You are my Sunshine
by Psychoticbunny
Summary: Hyuuga Neji is your average nine year old boy. He plays sports, attends the fourth grade, and dislikes shopping for clothes. So why wont he go into the bathroom? Gaahina ON HIATUS!
1. Chapter 1

Psychoticbunny: Yo, peoples! 'Sup? 'Tis me, the insane person. Or Psychoticbunny, which still includes the fact that I am completely bonkers. This is my third Naruto fic, but my first one that isn't a one-shot. Now, here's the deal. I'm gonna update this fic now (duh), finish another story of mine, and then continue updating this one. There also might be a couple of updates in between and I might switch to updating this story. So yeah. On with the disclaimer. Take it away Hinata!

Hinata: T-t-the author o-of t-t-t-this f-fanfic d-d-doesn't-

Psychoticbunny: Okay, this is taking too long. Tsunade!

Tsunade: SHE DOESN'T OWN THE FIC, KONO KUSO GAKI! (Translation: you spoiled brat)

Psychoticbunny: The only warning is I might put some shojou-ai in. Enjoy!

---

Before this day, I had never known a door could be this intimidating. It is large and wooden with a word painted neatly at the top, but to me it is as if it is bearing razor-sharp fangs.

The boy beside me is glaring. His very bold features, including eyes as black as a raven's feather and dark hair with an almost blue-ish tint, contrast beautifully with his pale, smooth skin. He clicks his tongue between plump, pink lips and says something with an angry gesture at the door.

I shake my head. I can't go in there! There's a picture of a little man on a blue background! I'm not stupid!

He grunts in annoyance, turns, and stalks off moodily.

I cross my legs my legs, trying to help my problem. I need to get to it, but how? I can't go through that door! But do I have a choice?

Down the hall, I see the boy come back with the teacher, a vivacious women with blood-red eyes. I can almost feel his fierce look radiating towards me.

I bite my lip anxiously. This is so embarrassing!

The teacher speaks slowly and carefully to me, as if it will help me understand. I shake my head, not knowing what else to do.

The teacher twirls her wavy hair and her enchanting eyes turn upwards in thought.

After a bit she speaks the same words, now pointing from me to the door.

"No!" I cry in distraught, but all she does is look at me like I just grew a second head.

She turns and says something to the boy, who has been watching the whole scene with an amused smirk on his face. He nods and heads back towards the classroom.

The teacher whispers what I think is supposed to be comforting and caring, but for all I know, she could be requesting me to jump off a cliff.

Then, there are two boys standing next to me. The one from before, and an almost creepy second with messy red hair and a character on his forehead over his right eye. Finally, something I can read! It says 'love.'

"What's your problem?" he says bluntly.

"I-I'm so s-s-sorry! I d-didn't mean t-t-to c-cause any t-trouble!" I stutter. I was never good at talking to people. I'm very shy.

"Well, too bad. You did. Why can't you just go to the bathroom?" he accuses. I want to crawl under a rock and cry my heart out.

"I c-can't g-g-go in t-there!" I cry out.

"Why not? The door doesn't bite, you know." Yes, but it looks like it could!

"Y-yes. B-but that n-n-not the p-problem!"

"No, it isn't. You know what the problem is? You!" I don't like this boy.

"W-what do y-you m-mean?"

He laughs at me. It sounds just as creepy as how he looks. Does he put on eyeliner? If he does, it's certainly too much.

"Jeez, it's a _bathroom_. I've been in there tons of times and _I've _never had an issue with it. Seriously, what's wrong with you? It's not like you're a girl."

"I _am_ a g-g-girl!" Almost no stuttering.

With the way all these people are staring at me, I'm starting to actually think that I might have grown another head. I subconsciously reach a hand up to my neck to check.

"What?!" is all he manages to get out in his stupefied form. I can't blame him for thinking I'm male. My hair is short and boyish, and I'm wearing a baggy t-shirt with baggy jeans.

"I'm a girl! I'm a girl! I'm a girl! And I need to pee!" I'm surprised at my outburst, but when you gotta go, you gotta go.

He quickly explains the situation to the teacher. Or he's inviting her to dinner. I hope it's the first!

Her eyes widen in realization and he talks. After he is finished, she orders them to do something, grabs me by the hand, and leads me to another door. This one is the right one! It has a picture of a little woman on a pink background.

I rush inside and relieve myself. Oh thank you so much ancestors! I'm so lucky I got up early enough to pray to you all!

I exit after thoroughly washing my hands. I like being clean.

The teacher is waiting for me outside. I wish I knew her name.

She pulls me by the hand once more as we return to the classroom. I do wish that my classmates wont laugh at me like Creepy Boy. There. That works. Creepy Boy is the creepy boy's name. The teacher can be Ms. Pretty Lady, and the other boy…hm. He'll be Pretty Boy. I can only pray he doesn't find out about that nickname.

We reach a room with another terrifying door. They were just popping up all over the place.

I gulp as she reaches for the doorknob, half expecting for it to jump off and bite her. I want to scream, "Don't do it!" but all that would do is trigger Creepy Boy to snicker at me again, and maybe even gossip about how stupid I was with his friends.

I briefly wonder about whether or not Creepy Boy and Pretty Boy are companions, but am forced to stop as I get yanked into the room.

Ms. Pretty Lady smiles and… well, I'll presume she's introduced me. Some people are waving, and others (like Creepy Boy and Pretty Boy) ignore me like Ms. Pretty Lady dragged in a log instead of a human.

Then, she instructs Creepy Boy to do something and he glares at me with those unnatural, turquoise eyes. I think I may have accidentally walked into a glaring contest between Pretty Boy and he.

"She wants you to introduce yourself," he states in a monotone.

"Oh. O-okay. M-m-my name's N-neji. H-hyuuga Neji," I practically whisper.

"Not in Chinese, doofus! English!" His name is now Creepy Boy That I Don't Like. Or maybe that's a bit long…

"Quit spacing off!" he scolds.

I apologize quietly.

Ms. Pretty Lady looks at us quizzically and says something else to Creepy Boy. Yes, I'll just leave it as Creepy Boy.

He replies with my name.

Ms. Pretty Lady points at a chair next to Creepy Boy, saying something else. I'm not sure what she means. Does she want me to get the chair for her?

I nervously walk over (everyone's watching me), pick up the chair, and begin walking back before Creepy Boy stops me.

"She told you to sit down! Now put down the chair! You look like an idiot! Can't you speak English?"

I blush and return the chair to its original position. Hesitantly sinking into it, I see Pretty Boy chucking at me. This only makes me blush harder.

Ms. Pretty Lady starts elucidating the homework from last night (or from several nights ago, for all I know), which I do not have so I tune her out, taking this opportunity to examine my classmates.

On my left, (unfortunately) sits Creepy Boy. Every so often his eyes flick towards me and away, once he perceives I'm looking back. Pretty Boy is sitting across from me, making tiny check marks on every problem. To my right is an attractive girl with long, sleek blond hair. She stares non-stop at Pretty Boy, but he either doesn't notice or doesn't mind. The boy diagonally to my right has his pineapple-shaped ponytail sticking up, head resting on his desk. Oh no! Is he in trouble?

Not wanting to cause commotion, I lean over to my left and murmur, "Is t-that b-b-boy okay?"

"Who?" Creepy Boy answers testily. "Oh, you mean Shikamaru. Yeah. He's fine. The lazy bum's just sleeping. He always does that in class."

"B-but he s-s-should b-be paying attention o-or else h-h-he'll f-f-fail!"

"Nah. That guy's a genius. Sleeps through class, yet does all his homework and aces every test."

"W-what? B-b-but d-doesn't he g-get-"

Creepy Boy interrupts me. "You know, it's really annoying when you stutter. Cut it out."

"S-sorry. I mean sorry."

"Anyway, shut up. I'm trying to pay attention."

I doubt that, but don't mention it. What good would it do to anger him more? Getting back to my classmates.

A brunet is sitting diagonally to my left. He's passing notes with a blond boy near him. A pink-haired girl glares at them disapprovingly as they snicker at the tiny papers.

A little farther on a boy in… oh my god. Is that spandex? _Green _spandex? Oh, my eyes. Oh, my poor eyes. Oh dear, that's very disturbing.

Anyway, moving right along, Spandex Boy is gazing at Pink Girl with the same look on his face as Blond Girl.

I finally get over the spandex and am able to inspect Spandex Boy.

Okay. I wish I just stuck with the spandex. Oh dear. Those eyelashes. And that hair. Oh dear.

I copy Shirimari? Shimiranu? Sleepy Boy. There we go. So, I copy Sleepy boy and place my head on my desk.

"You okay?"

I let out a shriek at the sudden voice and everybody's eyes are on me for the second time this day. Creepy Boy is glaring at me with more irritation than usual.

Ms. Pretty Lady looks at me, concerned, before telling Creepy Boy to do something. He tries to respond, but she cuts him off and repeats herself.

He looks very frustrated, and for a second I think he is going to attack Ms. Pretty Lady, but only demands me to follow him.

"W-where are w-w-we –sorry- where are we going?" I inquire.

"Nurse," he grunts.

"Why? I'm not sick. I feel fine," I say.

"Tell Ms. Stupid then! I _tried _to tell her what happened, but she never listens to me!" he rages.

I squeak in fear. I hate it when people get angry.

He pauses for a moment and then mutters something.

"Huh?"

"I said I'm sorry," he mumbles, a bit more clearly.

"Oh. T-that's –sorry, it's a habit- that's okay." I smile at him and even though he immediately swings his head to the side, I still see the light pink on his cheeks and his lips turned up ever so slightly. He doesn't look that creepy when he smiles. Maybe I'll change his name to Smile Boy. Actually…

"Um, what's your name?"

We've started walking again, but he stops and turns to face me.

"Oh yeah. It's Gaara. Nice to meet you… Neji, right?" He says.

"Yeah." I say and bow. "Nice to meet you."

I hear a snort of amusement, a mutter of, "Overly polite," and footsteps.

With a start, I apprehend that he's begun walking without me. I jog a bit to catch up, however, he just picks up his pace. Catching onto the game, I also increase my speed and soon we're racing to the nurse's office.

Gaara is winning and doesn't even seem to be trying very hard, while I am running at my top speed and panting like a dog on a hot summer's day.

Before I know it, he stops, and I find myself with a face-full of his shirt. He flinches, but doesn't say anything.

"Ow. What's wrong?"

"Teachers. Smile and look innocent."

I peek over his shoulder at a man with his chocolate-colored hair pulled back in a ponytail chatting casually with another man, this one with gravity-defying silver hair and… wait. Is that a mask over his face? Yes, yes it is. What kind of teacher wears a mask?

They momentarily greet Gaara and me before continuing their conversation. Again, I'm just assuming they've greeted us, and not asked us to go bungee jumping in the Himalayas.

"Mr. Kakashi and Mr. Iruka," Gaara says, distracting me from the visual in my mind of us leaping down mountains.

"Wha?" I've gotta work harder at paying attention to people or everyone will think I'm mentally challenged (or maybe they already think that).

"The two teachers. Those are their names."

"Oh."

We continue walking, void of any conversation.

"So…" Gaara says, trying to break the silence. "Why are you dressed like that anyway?"

"Like what?" I ask.

"Like a boy," he replies.

"Oh. It's… um… well…"

"You don't want to tell me?"

"It's not that I don't _want_ to, but you'll probably just laugh at me." I halt and stare down at my sneakers.

"I wont."

"No, you will."

"No, I _wont_. Not if you don't want me to."

"I… okay. I'll tell. My parents want me to." I rub my shoes against the floor so they make a squeaking sound.

"So? Why follow their orders?"

"I don't want to disappoint them anymore." I stop rubbing. I want to cry. I really do. That's my greatest fear: Disappointing people, especially those dear to me, yet I do it anyway.

"How have you disappointed them?" The voice is a lot closer than I expect. Gaara has moved right next to me.

"I should've been a boy. If I could've done anything in my life differently, I would've been a boy." I'm surprised my voice hasn't cracked. I don't like talking about this.

"Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I ask in return. And he calls me stupid. "Girls can't do anything! Girls don't have power! Only boys do! So I have to dress like a boy for good luck so I'll have a younger brother. Then, I'll be given away to the orphanage because my parents wont have a use for me any longer. I only have one year left. It's Hyuuga tradition to wait ten years before having a second child. And then I'll be useless."

I burst into sobs after squeezing the explanation out. It hurts so much, knowing that you're not even wanted by your own parents.

I can tell Gaara is unsure of what to do. He raises his arms as if he wants to pat or hug me, but stops mid-way and lets them flop back to their previous positions at his sides.

"Shhh. It'll be okay," he states with uncertainty. A hug would make it better. Holding his hand, burying my face in his shirt, just as long as we are touching. That's what I desire: human contact, the one thing my parents refuse to give me.

I shyly reach my hand out to touch his check. He doesn't notice; he is too busy attempting to cheer me up with his awkward words.

My tears ease up as I near his face. The closer I get, the calmer I become. My heavy sobs have been reduced to mere sniffles, as I am just about to stroke it.

I am absolutely silent as my index finger gently brushes his soft skin. I am amazed. I had thought it would be rough, like his personality.

He instantly jumps back, like he has been slapped. His eyes, so sinister and frightening all this time, do not scare me now. They have been replaced with something else. What? It's not anger or shock, but perhaps an emotion I am all too familiar with. Is that fear I see? What has upset him?

"Gaara, are-"

"Let's go back to the classroom," he says stiffly and briskly struts in that direction.

I have to jog to keep up, except this time no game has been generated. We go in a quiet manner.

---

Psychoticbunny: So, what do you think? Like it, hate it? I think I might actually switch to this story now that I've typed it up. Now, voting time! I _do _want tomake this romance so you have three choices for couples (unless I add more): Gaahina, Inohina, and Sasuhina. You can also offer your own pairing as a side-pairing or a main pairing, but…

Warning: If it's not Gaahina (which is where it's heading right now), there is a chance I will pair Gaara with Lee.

Warning #2: If you ask for Naruhina, Narusaku, or Sasusaku, forget it because those are my least favorite pairings. I _do _like Shikatema and Shikaino though, and I also don't mind any shojou-ai and shounen-ai pairings besides Orosasu because it creeps me out.

Other than that, all I have to add is that even thought it's rated K now, the rating might go up for cursing and violence, if I choose to put it in. The highest it will go to is T, though, because I don't write M-rated fics. Oh wait! I _do _have something more to add! I might be switching p.o.v. in the chapters. So bye! Review and I'll work harder on getting the next chapter up!


	2. Chapter 2

Psychoticbunny: Wow. I'm back. This is a really fast update for me. I've been typing in my room for probably about three or four hours altogether. It's a long chapter and I worked hard on it so enjoy it please! Also, you may have noticed that the rating has changed to a T. That's because I realized there are some things that are not suitable for the younger bunch. Now, onto the disclaimer!

Gaara: Hn.

Psychoticbunny: Close enough, but let's let Hinata do the warnings.

Hinata: The warnings are cursing, mentions of rape (no details), and some violence.

Psychoticbunny: … That was too normal and boring. Take it away Gaara!

Gaara: Hn.

Psychoticbunny: Yay Gaara! XD By the way, review replies are at the bottom. Now, READ OR DIE! MUAHAHA

Hinata and Gaara: o.0

---

"Neji! Neji!"

I turn around at the sound of the voice. It's Note Boy #1 (the brunet) and Note Boy #2 (the blond).

Note Boy #2 starts animatedly discussing something with us with exaggerated gestures, a goofy grin on his face the whole time. I don't think he detects that I'm not picking any of it up.

At this point, Note Boy #1 responds with an equally, if not more, hyperactive answer. Do they even notice I'm here?

Suddenly, Note Boy #2 faces me and asks me a question, gazing at me expectedly.

I don't know why I do it, but I begin to nod vigorously. Note Boy #2 seems to be displeased at my reaction and starts bellowing at me furiously.

I want to ask for ask for forgiveness, but how? Where is Gaara?

Note Boy #1 is now tapping him on the shoulder with a frightened look on his face, but Note Boy #2 is too caught up in his effort to reprimand me.

I hear another voice from behind me and Note Boy #2 finally spots whatever fearsome being has gotten Note Boy #1 so riled up. They both scamper off after a firm admonishing from my mysterious savior.

"Are you okay, Mistress Neji?"

I know that voice.

"Ge ge (1)! What are you doing here?" I exclaim while twirling to hug my cousin.

He laughs joyfully and returns the motion. "I came to pick you up. And just in time, too. Why on earth was that boy yelling so much about ramen?"

"Oh. I'm not sure… He was shouting about ramen?"

"Yeah. He sounded pretty upset. He was saying something about you not liking it and you being evil or something because of it, but that doesn't make any sense; you like ramen."

So _that's _what he was asking about.

"Don't worry about it, Ge ge."

We head off towards the Hyuuga manor.

I am thankful I have such a great cousin as Ge ge. He is always there for me when I'm lonely or in trouble. Of course, it _is _his job to protect me. After all, he's only a member of the branch family. I, being a member of the main family, am of much higher importance, despite the fact I am female. However, he looks out for me like he means it, like an older brother, which is why I call him Ge ge.

"Mistress. Mistress!"

"Huh? Wha?" I really hate the fact I zone out so often.

"We're home." He points out.

We stand in front of an enormous stone gate, blocking the massive house within from view.

"Who is this?" comes the crackly voice of my father over the intercom.

"Master Neji and me, Neji," Ge ge replies.

There is a slight screeching sound as the gate opens to reveal a long, winding path.

"Here we go," Ge ge sighs quietly so I wont hear. He doesn't like coming with me to the main house. It's probably do to the fact everyone treats him as if he is some dirt I've accidentally tracked in the mansion, instead of the respectable person he is. He knows it makes me worry when he is uncomfortable or upset.

I grab onto his hand and beam up at him. He returns it weakly and looks away, avoiding meeting my eyes. My smile falters. He's hiding something from me, I can tell, but I don't ask. He won't answer.

Father is waiting for us when we reach the front door. Now I know something is really wrong; Father never does this unless he must tell me news, and I'm guessing it's bad news from his grave expression.

Ge ge bows. "Nin hao ma (2), Master?" I cringe at the stiffness in his voice.

Father does not respond, purposely ignoring him. This isn't unusual. No one ever pays attention to Ge ge.

"Neji!" he barks. "Come." He glares at Ge ge. "You. Leave."

"Of course, Master."

Wait. Now this is abnormal. Father is not commonly this harsh.

"He'll explain," I hear Ge ge whisper before setting off on the path towards the branch family's houses, separate from the main family's and considerably smaller.

"Neji! Follow me."

Father swiftly rotates and begins walking so I once again find myself jogging to catch up. He leads me to an unoccupied room deep within the Hyuuga manor.

"Sit," he commands and I obey.

"What is wrong Father?" I ask, choosing to stare at my fingers resting on my knees, rather than meeting the stern gaze of Father.

He sits down opposite of me. "Neji, you are well aware of the fact that in order to keep the main family in control of the Hyuuga clan, we need to give birth to a male, correct?"

I nod.

"You also aware that if we instead give birth to a female, that… that _boy _will become the head of the Hyuuga clan?" He says, apparently unable to bring himself to say Ge ge's name.

I nod.

"Well, I have some bad news to deliver." No, really? I hadn't noticed. (3) "Your mother is pregnant, however, test results say that it will be a girl."

I have to bite my tongue to refrain from gasping. What will happen now? Will another child be forced to go through what I have, only to be thrown away like some expired milk? Will Father just give up the clan to the branch family without a fight?

"As you can see, the main family no longer has an heir for the Hyuuga clan and will have to surrender control over it, but…"

But?

"But there is still one way we will be able to remain in charge of our clan."

I grind my teeth to stop myself from asking, "What?" It would not be wise to speak out of turn.

"That way is having you," I knew it had to do with me, "married."

"Huh?" I blurt incredulously, not able to hold it in now. I crane my neck up to look at him so fast it hurts.

"Do not worry," Father continues, seemingly oblivious of my response. "We have already chosen a suitable partner, one from another clan of our status."

"No! I don't want to get married!"

Father is angry with me. I should've been more controlled.

"N-no, I'm s-s-sorry. I d-didn't mean… I-I j-j-just-"

Father looks livid. I shouldn't have opened my big mouth. I bow as low as I can, but to no avail.

"You are not to complain about my decisions! You will meet your fiancé this Saturday for tea! You are to wear your best dress and be on your best behavior! Now, to your room! You are to stay there until further notice!" he yells.

I scurry out and run down random halls, turning every chance I get, until I am sure I am very far away from that room. Safe!

I lean against a nearby wall, breathing heavily. My head is spinning from all of my thoughts. Married? Fiancé? Hello! I'm nine!

I collapse on the ground and begin to cry. I hate the fact that I'm so weak and that I cry so easily. I want to be less sensitive and stronger. Yes, strength would be fabulous. Ge ge was so much better than me as a person. Did I really have what it takes to rule a clan? I bet my younger sister would do a better job!

No. I won't cry.

I gather myself and stand up again. Maybe Father would change his mind.

---

(4) Father- a man who exercises parental care over other persons; paternal protector or provider: _a father to the poor_.

What a load of lies.

I throw the dictionary across the room. It crashes with the closet door, knocking down my backpack, previously hanging on the doorknob.

"What happened?" Temari asks as she exits our room to see what the commotion is about. Noticing the pile of jumbled school supplies near the closet she adds, "Gaara. There are other ways to let out your anger." She walks over to clean up the mess I've made.

I'm an angry child. I won't deny it. And I take my anger out on anything and everything.

"Gaara, we should sit down and solve this one of these days," she says as she loads my homework back into my backpack and moves it to the front door. "I think we might be able to do it tomorrow."

"You said that yesterday." I know I am hard on her, even though I shouldn't be. "And the day before that. And the day before that. And the day before that-"

"Okay, okay. I get it." She sighs and goes back into our room. She's much too tired to deal with me tonight. She lives a hard life; when she's not juggling her schoolwork and jobs, she's dealing with me. And trust me. That's a pain. I always make sure of it. Why can't people get that maybe I'm perfectly fine just the way I am? Well, not _perfectly. _But neither is anything else in this family.

I prepare myself for a long night. It's not like this night is any different than others. It's just that every night feels longer when you have insomnia. And unlike during daytime, there's nothing to distract you. At night, I feel alone. Trapped. Unwanted. It's almost as if the feeling is magnified in the cool darkness.

My mind drifts back to the school day.

What a weird girl, that Hyuuga Neji. She's interesting, I'll give her that much. Not like most girls my age, who are usually too busy swooning over that Sasuke guy to notice anything else. She's still pretty dopey like the rest of them, but… but there's something different about her. Dare I say it? Might she be… cute?

…

No. Not cute. To think I would even wonder about such a notion. Ugh. Cute. Ha! Right! And I love sweet, little puppies and kittens! (I don't though! It's sarcasm, people, sarcasm.)

It _is _odd that she has a boy's name. I guess her parents wanted to be thorough. I don't really like that name though. Maybe I should call her Stupid Girl…

Wait. No way. That would be like her calling me Creepy Boy or something like that. No, Stupid Girl would not due. Maybe I should girl up her name a bit. Nejiana? What's that thing Japanese people do? Oh yeah. Neji-chan then?

Okay. What am I doing? Whatever it is, I've got to stop.

…

What if I gave her a name completely different from Neji? Xiao Hua (5). Yeah, that would fit her. She seems dainty enough, dumb as she is. Well, flowers don't necessarily have genius IQs.

Damn it! I'm doing it again.

Wait. I heard a sound.

I slide off my chair and hide in the closet, concealing my body with coats, incase he tries looking in here again.

The doorknob jiggles and my breath hitches.

I cross my fingers as I hear the click signaling the door had been unlocked.

I feel my heart pound in my chest as the door creaks open. I'm afraid it might pop out and reveal my location.

"It's just me," whispers a voice.

I release the breath I had been holding. I still don't expose my presence. It's better just to wait until he decides to go to sleep.

I relax my shoulders. I hadn't realized they were so tense until I did so.

Then there are footsteps of thunder from the hallway.

Oh no.

---

I pace nervously up and down the stairs to school. I've arrived early, out of anxiety. Hopefully, this day will go better than yesterday.

"Neji!"

Please don't let it be Ramen Boy! (I'd changed his name, thinking this one was a more suitable name and made things a lot less confusing. Having two Note Boys makes it hard to remember which is which.)

Red hair. Love tattoo. Eyeliner. Thank goodness. Only Gaara.

Wait a minute. I take this moment to remember the unpleasant moment (I call it an unpleasant moment because it wasn't really a fight) we had. However, it seems that he isn't still mad at me.

"Good morning." I congratulate myself on not stuttering.

He grunts and I figure it's the best greeting I'll get out of him.

"What happened?" I ask after observing a bandage covering his right check.

"Nothing."

"You sure?"

"Hn."

Is there now some sort of weird trend that's not to speak in full sentences?

"So… um… so you're not mad about yesterday?"

He looks at me with a face that says, "You idiot." I suddenly feel really stupid about worrying about it last night. I lost so much sleep over something that didn't even matter! Now I was kind of mad at _him_.

"Couldn't you have said that before we left school?" I accuse.

He shrugs. "Yeah."

If I were any other person, I would attack him by this point. If I were any other person, I would be screaming my head off. However, I'm not any other person, so I try a little of both and manage to fail miserably.

With a small, barely hearable, "Why you!" I kind of flail my arms in front of me, only to receive another "You idiot" look. If he had eyebrows (which is considerably odd, when I think about it), one of them would be raised. Still, he has this way of making it look like he's raising his eyebrow; despite the fact it's non-existent.

"Why don't we just go to class?" he suggests and I nod as a heavy blush settles on my face.

"Hey Gaara," I say.

"Mm?"

"Will Ms. Pretty Lady be there?"

I wonder if he hangs out with me long enough, his face with get permanently stuck in that "You idiot" look.

"Ms. Pretty Lady?" he repeats, still staring at me like I'm some sort of alien species.

"Yeah… well, uh… you see…well." I search my head for an excuse, but come up empty-handed. Instead, I say the whole sentence as quickly as possible. "Idon'tknowmostpeople'snamessoIjustkindofmakeupmyownonesforthemliketheteacherisMs.PrettyLadyandyouusedtobeCreepyBoynooffenseornaythingbutIhadtocomeupwithanameandIdidn'treallylikeyoutoomuchbackthen." Then I let out this part-laugh-park-choke-part-bark thing.

"So what you're saying is you didn't know most people's names, so you just kind of made you your own ones for them, like the teacher is Ms. Pretty Lady and I used to be Creepy Boy, no offense or anything, but you had to come up with a name and you didn't really like me too much back then?" Maybe I _should _start calling him Creepy Boy again.

"Ehehe. Yeah."

He sighs. "You idiot." At least he said it this time. The look is more degrading. "You should have just asked me. The teacher is Ms. Kurenai. Any others?"

"Yeah. There's Ramen Boy, Note Boy, Pretty Boy, and a whole lot more!"

"Okay. Ramen Boy? That's got to be Naruto. In that case, Note Boy's going to be Kiba. Pretty Boy has to be Sasuke. And more? I don't think I have the patience for this." He sighs again, clutching his head and shaking it disapprovingly. "Let's just get to the god damn classroom. And yes, _Ms. Pretty Lady_ is there."

I gasp.

"What?"

"You cursed!"

"Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn, damn-"

"Let's just go to class!"

He cackles evilly. What is he? The living reincarnation of the Devil? Wait. I don't want to know the answer.

---

I have a new favorite sport! It's called bothering Neji! I should find a system of keeping points. Then again, with whom would I play? I don't really have many friends (a total of zero), probably due to my aloof behavior and creepy appearance. Yes, I'll admit I have a creepy appearance. I worked hard on it. Wouldn't want to be _likeable _or anything like that. Being approachable is already a stretch.

Still, I guess I could play with myself. Let's see, one point if you make her blush, seeing as she does that a lot. Five, if you make her actually voice her complaint. Ten, if she reacts physically, which is rare. Hm. If she combines any of them, you just combine the points. For instance, if she blushes _and _reacts physically, that's eleven points. Then-

"Gaara, what's wrong?" Neji questions, poking me with her chopsticks (the back sides, of course).

"Hm?" Speaking in one-word sentences. That usually ticks her off.

"You're smirking like you're plotting something evil."

Damn it! I've got to stop scheming at the lunch table.

"Hey Gaara. Can I ask you something?" she says shyly. Hm. What's this?

"I don't know. _Can_ you?" I should be a professional wise guy. It takes talent. Seriously.

I receive the sorta-kinda-glare that makes me squirm pleasurably (Well, mentally. Neji thinks I'm strange enough as is. If I start squirming out of pleasure whenever she gets angry, she might just get angrier. Actually…) because Neji doesn't glare. She doesn't have the heart.

She brushes the comment off. "I kind of… well you see…"

"Spit it out."

"I was wondering if you could teach me English!"

"Teach you English? What kind of moron comes to America without knowing how to speak English?"

One point.

"I just… I want… it's just that…"

"Fine."

"What?" She looks up from her lap where she is twiddling her fingers to gape at me disbelievingly.

"I'll teach you English. I guess if you practice enough you'll be able to learn it, dumb as you are."

She looks partly offended and partly grateful.

"Well, the sooner we start, the better," I say.

"Oh. Okay. How about you come over to my house tomorrow afternoon?" she offers.

"'Kay." Not like anyone would miss me. "Got anything else to say?" I add, observing her opening and closing her mouth.

"Oh. Y-yes. Um…" Another point. "Thank you so much!" She smiles at me and I feel my stomach do this weird twisting motion. I blame the cafeteria food, but find myself copying her. She looks at me oddly. I guess I'm out of practice so I quickly wipe the expression off my face. I barely catch the small frown that appears on her face as I decide to turn my attention to the window.

---

One- Ge ge means older brother in Chinese. (Mandarin, by the way) So that's why Hinata calls Neji Ge ge as apposed to nii-san, which is Japanese.

Two- Nin hao ma means how are you. The nin is used as opposed to ni to show respect. If you speak Spanish, it's kind of like su and tu.

Three- I know it's not Hinata's thing to use sarcasm, but I love using sarcasm (which is why I love writing Gaara's p.o.v.) so I had to put it in.

Four-Yeah. I switched p.o.v. Whenever you see ---, that means the p.o.v. changes, unless I say otherwise.

Five- Xiao Hua means little flower in Chinese.

And for those of you out there that speak Chinese, I'm sorry the toning doesn't work.

Psychoticbunny: Okay. Review replies will go like this. Anonymous review replies will be either at the top or here. Regular reviews will just get a reply by me replying to their review. Now that that's said, here we go:

SnowyNight- Sorry about the confusion with the names, but it was necessary. It's gonna stay Gaahina. Also, thank you for your long review! Long reviews make me feel good. :)

SilentAbyss- I think I'm actually going to put in a Gaahinasasu triangle. It will fit. Sorry about the confusion with the names. It will be explained later. I guess Gaahina is a crack pairing. After all, they barely even see each other in the series. Still, it's fairly popular. Thank you for your long review:)

Psychoticbunny: See you next time! XD


	3. Chapter 3

Psychoticbunny: Hi peoples! Thank you for the great reviews! I was happy:D I just want you guys to know I'm changing Temari and Kankuro's ages. Temari is five years older than Gaara (14) and Kankuro is two years older than Temari (16). It's for the sake of the story. Now, review replies!

SilentAbyss- Thanks. I made her Chinese 'cause I take Chinese in school so I realized: Hey! I can use all of the stuff I learned! I can't help you with Cantonese. I can barely speak Mandarin! - I know the whole two Nejis are confusing, but it'll be explained. Gaara is not rich in this story. He's actually really poor. It actually mentions it in this chapter. It's gonna make it harder for both of them because Hiashi will be upset if Hinata likes someone of that status. Thank you again for your long review. Seriously, I live for these reviews.

SnowyNight- Thanks. I worked extra hard on the comedy in that chapter because the beginning was so serious. I actually can't be serious at all. I'm writing another angst fic and I keep making jokes everywhere. Oh well. I think I like anonymous reviews best 'cause you guys are putting in your opinion. Thanks again!

Disclaimer: Gaara would kill me if I owned him and Hinata would be scarred for life. And that's only two characters reactions.

Warnings: Cursing, mentions of rape, and… I dunno. I forgot. Whatever. Read the chapter and you'll find out.

"Regular"- Chinese

"_Italics"- _English

---

Gaara is really, well, cute when he smiles. It's almost as if he's out of practice or something so he experiments when he does. It's kind of twisted, but looks wonderful on his face anyway. I'm sad he stopped. It was so adorable I had to falter just to admire it.

I shake my head. I can't think about this. I need to listen to Mother while she crams nine years' worth of education in proper manners of ladies into my head.

"Remember that when pouring tea, you must be…"

But I don't want to listen to this. It's a lot more fun to think about Gaara. That boy is just one of a kind. Father had allowed him to come over when I asked, so now I was much too excited for tomorrow to pay attention to the correct way to walk when in a dress.

"Neji!"

"Huh? Wha?"

"Repeat what you have learned at this session to me."

Shoot.

---

"I'll be out late tomorrow," I inform Temari.

"Really? Why?" she replies.

"'Cause."

"Come on. Can't you tell me?"

"Fine. It's a friend."

She smiles happily. She's been waiting forever for me to acquaint someone. I doubt she would've cared if I'd added that she was a mass murderer I had helped escape from jail.

"Maybe you should invite him over one of these days. I'd like to meet one of your friends. This is really great Gaara."

"Invite over?" I give her a look. "To this dump? _She'd _probably ask why we're hanging out in the garbage can." I put emphasis on the 'she'd' to correct Temari's mistake.

"Come on Gaara. Give her a chance. Our apartment isn't a dump. It's a bit trashy, but we can't afford much more."

I hate being poor, but there's not much I can do about it. Most of the neighbors are too terrified of me to pay me for chores such as watering plants or feeding cats. Besides that one creepy old man who wants me to come over for 'fun.' I shudder at the thought.

"You okay?" Temari asks and I nod. "I'm going out to work then." I nod again.

And I'm alone again. I'm alone for most of my day. In school everyone avoids me like the plague (except for Neji, of course). Then, when I get home, Temari has to go to ten billion jobs. Finally, she gets back and has to flop down on the springy, uncomfortable excuse for a mattress in our room and goes to sleep. Later, my brother, Kankuro, gets home and does the same. After that comes nighttime, where minutes feel like years. In the morning comes school again, and then the process is repeated.

I wonder how I'm going to teach Neji English. I guess I'll start will the little words and move up. Or maybe I should start with simple phrases and then expand. Jeez. This is going to be harder than I thought.

---

Jeez. This is going to be harder than I thought. There are so many things to remember when it comes to being a proper lady. I just want to stay as a boy if it's this much of a hassle to be a girl.

I spent all of last evening learning, getting scolded, and then learning some more. And now I'm going to have to learn English too! I don't know how I'm going to handle all of this. I might explode from overload or something!

I accidentally let out an exasperated sigh.

"Neji, are you alright?" Gaara inquires.

"Huh? Oh me? Yeah, I'm fine," I lie. "Oh. Here we are."

Gaara's looking up at the fence in pure amazement. I won't be too surprised if he starts drooling.

"_This _is where you live?" he finally manages to say.

"Uh. Yeah. Let's go in," I say, pressing a button on the intercom.

"Who is this?"

"It's me, Neji, and my friend."

The gate opens and I lead Gaara up the almost tediously lengthy path. He looks at everything open-mouthed. I don't see what's so special about it. It's even smaller than what we had in China. Then again, I have to keep in mind that not most people are ridiculously rich and live in castle-sized estates.

"Right. Let's go to my room," I say as we reach the front door.

"This place is huge," I hear him mutter as I lead him through multiple hallways and up several staircases. I chuckle at his shock, but I think he's too busy ogling at his surroundings to perceive it.

"Okay. Here it is, my room," I say while opening the door, "Don't laugh. I know it's on the small side."

"The small side?" he says dubiously, gaping at my room.

My room really is one of the tinier rooms in the manor. It only has my four-poster bed, a desk with a computer, a couch, a rug, and a wooden bookshelf. The walls are plain and white, like the rest of my room, making it a very dull sight to me. Gaara, however, looks astonished.

"This place is so cool!"

I think this is the only time I ever seen Gaara excited. In fact, before this, I pondered whether he had any emotions in the first place. I can't help but giggle at his amazement. This time he notices.

"What? I think you could fit one million of my apartment in here. I can't believe you actually _live _here!" he exclaims.

I didn't know he lived in an apartment. That probably just added onto to the shock because of the comparison. He probably would think one of the regular houses in the branch family's district is impressive.

"Well, can we get started?" I ask, wanting to distract his attention.

"What? Oh yeah. Sorry. Got kind of side tracked," he… apologized? He's really acting out of character right now. "Well, now let's get to your lesson, dumbo." Never mind. "I've decided to start by teaching you the English alphabet because, unlike Chinese, each letter has a certain sound. Also, when you pair letters with others, sometimes it will make different sounds. You might want to take notes."

"Oh! Of course!" I say and retrieve a notebook and a mechanical pencil.

"Okay. We'll start with the letter A."

---

For an idiot, Neji sure does catch on fast. It's like she absorbs every piece of information I give her. Is she part sponge or something? By the end of one hour, we've covered the alphabet, a couple of small words, and a few important phrases. Maybe she isn't as dim-witted as I thought.

"Um… Gaara?" she says.

"Yeah?"

"I get it and stuff, but… it's just… um…" I glare at her. "Sorry. It's just that the alphabet is really hard to remember. How do you memorize the order? I know that it's only twenty-six letters, but it's just so hard to keep track of them all!"

"Well, there's a song you can sing," I state.

"Could you… could you teach it to me? Maybe? Please?" she questions.

I'm sure if I teach her the alphabet song, she'll get it right away. Nevertheless, there is the problem that I don't sing. And I'm sure if I did, it wouldn't sound too great. In fact, the only reason I know the alphabet song is because Temari used to sing it to me. I'm not even sure if I can remember the tune.

I'm about to turn her down when Neji gives me this helpless and lost look. For god's sake, it's _the alphabet_! Oddly enough, I soon find myself singing the familiar song.

"_A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y and Z. Now I know my ABCs. Next time won't you sing with me?_"

She repeats it, hitting every note perfectly. Then, she sings it again for fun. She starts grinning and doing this little dance that would normally look stupid, but, for some strange reason, looks absolutely perfect when she does it. She changes the beat around and sings it that way. She sings it every way I could ever think of and even more with matching dances for each. I'm entranced. I can't keep my eyes off her.

Suddenly, she opens her warm lavender eyes and stares straight into my icy turquoise ones. The warmth seems to spread from her eyes to mine and then throughout my entire body, until I'm tingling all over. I feel my lips curve upwards on their own accord and heat rise to my face.

I have an urge I have never had before: I want to hug her. I want to touch her, something I had avoided so much for the past nine years of my life. And now, someone I've known for only three days is going to break that hatred, that fear?

"Neji," I whisper. I still don't like that name, but it's Neji's name, so it's just right.

"Hm?" she says.

"Do you know how to say sunshine in Japanese?" I inquire.

She shakes her head.

"It's Hinata. And that's what I'll call you from now on, Hinata." Because you are my sunshine.

She blushes, even though I didn't add that last bit on, which is just like her. Yes, Hinata fits her wonderfully. She deserves a name that means something better than screw. (1)

I tuck some strands of her hair behind her ear delicately, as if she's made of porcelain. I run my fingers across her jaw and caress her cheek. Her skin is as soft as a baby's.

I abruptly realize what I'm doing and immediately withdraw my hand as if I have been burnt.

There's an awkward silence that follows. What have I done? What's wrong with me? I just screwed up the only friendship I've ever had! I think I need my brain checked. Not that I could afford it… damn it! Being poor is really frustrating! You can't even dis yourself without coming to a financial problem!

Hinata opens her mouth. I'm afraid of what she'll say. That she hates me? That she never wants to see me again?

"Let's eat something," she suggests, probably to break the intense atmosphere and I nod just so we can get out of here.

---

Over the past six hours I have been lying in my bed, thinking over the events of today, I have finally come up with one observation: My ceiling is very white. It's so white, it almost blinds you with it's white-ness, but not really. What an enigma. Too bad it has absolutely nothing to do with how peculiar Gaara was acting.

He was nice to me. I think this might be a sign of the apocalypse. Perhaps instead of pondering his behavior, I should hide under my bed for cover. Well, actually, I doubt a bed will protect me from the apocalypse.

Anyway, say the apocalypse isn't happening (this doesn't mean I'm deserting the idea completely though). What's up with Gaara? Naming me Hinata because it means sunshine. I thought for sure he would name me usuratonkatchi, because I'm fairly certain that means something along the lines of moron. And then there's that whole part where he was being really gentle to me and stroking my cheek. The weirdest thing was I kind of enjoyed it.

After that incident, the rest of the visit went pretty smoothly. We ate some food and Gaara taught me some more English before he left. We arranged to have our next lesson at his apartment on Friday, as long as I promised not to laugh and to leave at six. When I asked him why I had to leave then, he refused to answer.

Could it be that he's sick? You know, mentally. Or maybe even physically and it's affecting him mentally. I've heard of cases like that. Maybe there was some dust on my face and it was annoying him. Or could it be…? No. No, Gaara couldn't possibly _like _me, you know, _more _than friends. No, that could never happen.

…

Then again, I wouldn't know. Romance was always more of a girly thing so I was never taught any of it. So what I am in need of is a female friend. Someone who knows all about this stuff, someone who I could give daily updates to and could analyze all of Gaara's actions for me.

The question is do I like him back? I guess Gaara has his charm. Even though he's usually pretty rough, he can be really tender at times. There was always the tiny, miniscule detail that I'm going to be married, so there was no way we could ever be together.

I sigh and roll over on my side. He probably doesn't like me anyway. The next thing I hear is Ge ge crying out, "You're late!"

---

I hum the ABC song quietly to myself. I'm sitting on a tall ledge near the school. I arrived early, hoping to clear things up with Hinata.

I have to repeat the song. Where is she? I stop humming. Some other students have begun to turn up. Is something wrong? Is she purposely steering clear of me?

I hop off the ledge. Some kids stop to watch and gawk as I touch the ground practically noiselessly, but I disregard it.

"_Hey you_!" I shout at one of them who instantaneously recoils out of fright. "_Have you seen the new kid, Neji_?"

"_N-n-no_!" he squeaks. Wimp.

I moodily storm off to the classroom. Maybe she had gone ahead without me, thinking I would wait for her to come. She might have also came _really_ early, earlier than me, and hurried off to the classroom. Either way I was kind of mad at her. She should at least give me a chance to explain myself.

"_Hey Gaara!_" calls Naruto at I enter the classroom. I think that he thinks I'm his friend (which I'm not). "_Wazzup?_"

"_Hn. Naruto. Where's Neji?_" I ask.

"_Neji?_" he repeats. "_Oh yeah! The evil kid! He doesn't like ramen you know. He's a bad influence. I suggest you don't hang out with him; it might be contagious._"

"_It's _she _and I could care less about _her _opinions on ramen. _(2)" I reply. "_Just tell me where she is._"

"_Oh! I dunno. No one's seen her,_" he says.

Now I'm starting to get worried, but I have to calm down. She's probably just sick or something. My mind conjures up a picture of Hinata coughing her lungs out. No, not that sick. Just a small cold.

What if she's afraid to come to school now, because of yesterday? That wouldn't be fair! I forgave her for touching me, which I hate, yet she won't forgive me for something as measly as petting her face for a second or two? I bite my lip to prevent screaming in frustration.

I look at the clock above the chalkboard. It's five to nine. Five minutes! She has five minutes!

Tick tock, tick tock.

Four minutes.

Tick tock, tick tock.

Three minutes.

Tick tock, tick tock.

Two.

Tick tock, tick tock.

Hinata bursts into the room with only five seconds left until nine. She's panting, which leads me to believe she's run recently. She looks up and flashes me a smile.

The school bell rings and Ms. Kurenai stands up and tells everyone to settle down. Hinata sits down beside me and whispers, "I overslept. Sorry if I worried you."

I grunt in response and pretend to be focused on whatever the teacher's blabbing about, but in reality I'm relieved that she's okay. I wonder if she can see my body relax. I wonder if she can hear my heartbeat slow down. I wonder if she knows how much I care about her.

---

What's the use? What's the use of telling him anything when all he ever does is treat me like an empty seat? I race to class and make sure he knows I'm okay and all he does is grunt! A grunt. That's what I get. A grunt. Did he even notice I was gone? Why doesn't he care? I care about him!

"Mistress Neji. Is everything all right? You look troubled," says Ge ge. He has picked me up again.

"Yes, I'm alright. Thank you for asking. I've just got a lot of things on my mind," I answer.

"Yes, with the marriage and everything. That _would _cause plenty of stress. Learning how to act like a lady seems to be no easy task _and _taking English lessons would only add more pressure. I still want to meet this friend of yours, though." Ge ge doesn't like the idea of me going to 'some random boy's' apartment. He can get a bit over-protective at times, but I just have to remind him that if anything happens, I have my cell phone. Plus, just incase that gets lost, I always keep my back up cell phone in my backpack.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine. Gaara is really nice." Not.

"I know, I know. I just can't help but fret over it. I wish I could come along to make sure you'll be okay. Just call me if anything happens. I'll be at home," he notifies me.

"I know," I reassure. "You just need to calm down. Gaara's parents will be there to help us anything goes wrong." That's actually a total guess. I have no idea whether or not Gaara's parents work or stay home. Maybe he has siblings. I honestly can't say.

The rest of the walk goes on in silence (not including my head, which is telling Gaara off). As we near our home, I begin to think about how small Gaara's residence will be. It'll probably have a kitchen and a living room. Also, it'll have a bedroom or two for Gaara and his parents. Maybe more if he has siblings. I start to observe that I know almost nothing about Gaara. I should ask him about his life more often.

For a fleeting moment, I imagine Gaara homeless, struggling to make the cardboard box he lives in more hospitable. Wait, Gaara said he lives in an apartment, and unless he keeps a great deal of cardboard boxes, I doubt he would live in one. Even if he _did _own an incredible amount, I still think he would prefer his apartment to one of them.

I muse over what his room will look like. I'm not aware of any of his interests (another thing I make a mental note to ask him about) so for all I know, the whole room could be a lurid pink color! That's not too much like his personality though. No, his room would probably be black, based on his character. What would be in his room? Posters?

My mind suddenly comes up with this image of a poorly lit room with no windows and mid-evil torture devices. In the middle of the room, Gaara is cackling maniacally over the screams of my classmates having the machines put to use on them.

…

SCARY! Okay, let's just delete that image.

Maybe he's really girly, but just acts as if he's a big tough guy.

Now I see Gaara giggling innocently in a frilly pink dress with tons of lace. He's standing in a very pink room. Pink bed, pink stuffed animals, pink closet, pink lamp, pink everything. The wallpaper has little hearts all over it and on the floor rests a hot pink carpet.

…

Okay. That's ever scarier than the mid-evil torture one. Oh my eyes. That's worse than Spandex Boy (who I've found out wears that revealing in oh too many ways jumpsuit _every day_), and Spandex Boy is pretty bad.

Perhaps he's the sporty type, and his room will be filled with a bunch of trophies and equipment. However, he's never mentioned anything about sports to me.

There's also the chance it will be plain and boring like mine. White, white, and more white. Yeah. That's suits him best.

Actually, what suits him best in my opinion would be a vampire's coffin. Then again, a colossal house doesn't exactly fit my personality too well. I really have no clue what his room will look like, taking that into account.

I guess I'll find out tomorrow.

---

One- Yes, Neji means screw in Japanese. Like in the hammer, nail, screw thing. Why Kishimoto chose to name Neji this, I do not know. You can add that to why he decided to name Kakashi scarecrow.

Two- Whenever I switch to italics after previously typing in regular that means emphasis is put on the word(s). They _aren't _switching from Chinese to English every two seconds.

Psychoticbunny: Done! Thank goodness! I got writers block about ten times during this chapter. I'm surprised I got in finished. This was a real fluffy chapter. I know I kind of switched p.o.v. ten billion times, but I kind of had to. Not very funny, though. I know I'm kind of making Gaara and Hinata's relationship progress really quickly. Call it love at first sight? Ehehe. -U Whatever. See ya next time:D :D :D


	4. Chapter 4

Psychoticbunny: The reason I haven't updated in a while is because I'm writing another fic and I switch off between updating both every three chapters. It's good because it gives me time to refresh my brain and the chapters come out better. The bad side it, I'm writing it in past tense, so I might get confused about that and switch a bit, but I always read the chapter over and edit so there shouldn't be too many mistakes. Now, to the review replies and away!

SilentAbyss- I'm taking it in… middle school. Yeah. I'm really young. I hope you don't hold it against me. It's the only year they offered it so I took it right away. Anyway, Temari is fourteen and Kankuro is sixteen. Their father is living with (and abusing) them and what happened to their mother will be explained later. Can't be giving anything away! ;D A lot of the Naruto characters names are weird. Who on Earth is named fishcake? But Itachi is my favorite. Hehe, ferret. I know that Orochimaru means something like son of Orochi, which is an evil 8 or 9 headed creature in a game called Okami, which is based on a Japanese legend. Oh well. I should shut up now and let you read the chapter.

Disclaimer: Somehow, I don't think Kishimoto would appreciate it if I barged into his house at one in the morning and demanded the copyright to Naruto.

Warnings: Cursing, extreeeeeemly brief mention of rape, and now sexual reference! XD XD XD (It's shounen-ai sexual reference too because my inner shounen-ai fan is getting restless.)

Psychoticbunny: Enjoy the chapter while I drool at Gaara! 'drools'

Gaara: Uh… this is kind of unnerving. 'looks disgusted at the buckets of drool the author is producing'

---

"Really! Don't laugh!" Gaara begs me for what must be the fiftieth time this day.

"I won't! I won't! How many more times to want me to tell you!" I'm getting a bit testy. Can he just relax? We're friends, and friends don't laugh at each other if they don't want them to.

He bites his lip and looks away from me. I've grown used to this and recognized he does it whenever he's embarrassed. I'm fine with whatever his apartment looks like, so long as his room has absolutely no pink whatsoever.

"Okay," he says. "We're here."

We've stopped in front of a tall building. Gaara is shifting through his backpack, searching for a key. He finally finds it and inserts it into the keyhole, holding the door open for me. That's surprising. I didn't think Gaara would have any manners.

I mutter, "Thanks," while I step in.

A blond girl coming down the hallway stops when she catches sight of us.

"Ah! So this is your friend. You know, Gaara just won't shut up about you so I'm really excited to meet you. I wish I didn't have work. Kankuro's coming home at five thirty. Don't lock him out like last time. He got really upset with me for because he thought I was getting back at him from yelling at me. Anyway, I'll be home at eight. Make sure you eat something and please _try _to sleep tonight."

Gaara talks about me? I feel a blush rising up on my face, yet I suppress it.

"You know I have insomnia," Gaara protests.

Oh. I guess he didn't wear eyeliner after all. To have all of those bags under his eyes, though. When was the last time he slept?

"I know, I know. Still, there's more of a chance of you getting sleep if you lay down instead of sitting at that table and moping all night, throwing dictionaries at the closet."

Gaara looks really angry with her, but all she does is chuckle playfully and ruffle his hair a bit before waving goodbye and exiting. Dictionaries? What on Earth did Gaara have against dictionaries and his closet?

"Let's go. Just don't-"

"Laugh," I complete for him. "You're way too worried. And who's Kankuro? Why'd you lock him out?"

"Kankuro's my older brother and I locked him out because he's an ass," he replies bluntly. Okay then.

There's a pause in the conversation until I decide to break the silence. "I didn't know you have insomnia. I always thought you were wearing eyeliner." I giggle, but Gaara just glares so I make my laughter die down.

Now I feel very uncomfortable so I shut my big, stupid mouth for the rest of the trip upstairs.

He opens the door to apartment 403 and holds the door open again.

"I know it's really small compared to your house and…" I tune him out, not in the mood to listen to him being insecure. I instead take a look around.

There's a small kitchen part of it with a table in the center. There are several cupboards, a sink, and a refrigerator. There's a closet opposite on the wall opposite of the kitchen. I assume it is the one Gaara's… actually, who is she? She's too young to be his mother so I guess she's his sister or neighbor.

Moving right along, there's a living room further back and three doors. They're probably bedrooms. I believe Gaara shares one with his brother and his parents have another. If he has a sister, she either has the third room or it's a bathroom. Speaking of bathrooms…

"Gaara, may I please use the bathroom?" I ask.

He nods and points to the middle door. I thank him and head there to relieve myself. This reminds me of how we first met. It's hard to believe that the only reason we're friends is because I needed to go to the bathroom.

When I get out, Gaara is working on his homework. I still don't get any due to the fact I have no idea what it says. After I learn English I'll be able to get homework too. The advantage is I have more time to study.

I take this chance to examine him, now that he's off guard. He's actually really pretty when he's not glaring at me (which he usually is). Although his fiery red hair sticks out all over the place, it looks cute. His nose is also abnormally cute.

…

Did I just call my friend's nose abnormally cute? This couldn't be good for my health.

I cough to alert him of my presence. He jumps, startled.

"Oh!" he sighs. "Jeez. You gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry," I say, inspecting my feet.

"That's fine. You just scared me."

Scared him? For some odd reason, I never expected Gaara to be scared of anything. He was kind of my idol. He was always so strong. He'd never let anyone push him around. He even locked his brother out of the apartment.

He was staring at me and I found myself blushing at his intense gaze.

"Um… Your nose is really cute, you know!" I exclaimed, desperate to advert his attention. I'm ready for him to insult me and give me his classic "You idiot" look. However, nothing of the sort happens. He simply turns head to the side, not at all succeeding in hiding the deep red hue his pale skin has transformed into.

"L-let's just get started!" he stutters?! Where's Gaara and what has that imposter done with him?

"Okay," I agree. "Oh, by the way, where are your parents?" I wanted to check for Ge ge's sake.

"Out."

"Out?" I repeat.

"Yeah. You know, the place other than your home." I have the feeling he's trying to make me feel like an idiot.

"Yes, I know what the outside is," I say more irritably than I expected. "Let's get to work already."

So that means we're all alone. Ge ge wouldn't like this at all. He dislikes it when I was alone anywhere, let alone in another person's home, especially a boy's. I'd have to make sure this information 'slips my mind.' I can't help feel a bit fuzzy inside my stomach when I sit down next to Gaara. I ignore the sensation.

---

This study date was certainly going in a bad direction. First, Temari has to go and blab that I 'never shut up' about Hinata. (This means I mention her a couple of times. I never talk much in the first place so it's equivalent to never shutting up.) Next, I make her feel uneasy by glaring at her. I didn't mean to. I just despise it when people say they think I wear eyeliner. It's really insulting. Besides, we can't afford any makeup. Temari gets teased for not wearing any. Then, Hinata says my nose is cute. No, it didn't make me feel good. Not at all. Nope.

…

Okay. I was really happy when she complimented me. Really embarrassed, yes, but also overjoyed. She thought I had a cute nose!

Maybe I was sick or something. It's not at all like my character to obsess over someone liking my nose. I always feel weird around Hinata too. Am I allergic to her or something?

"Um… Gaara?" Hinata waves her hand in front of my face.

"What?" I snap unintentionally. I see her recoil in her seat. I feel terrible. I'm really horrible to whomever I care about. I'm surprised anyone will come near me anymore. I murmur an apology so quietly I'm sure she has to strain her ears to hear, but her expression lightens considerably once I do.

"I've been trying to get your attention. Someone's at the door."

Kankuro. Now he's going to be pissed at me. Well, he's always pissed at me.

Nonetheless, I jump up and unlock the door to face my older brother. I haven't seen him in a while, not since I locked him out and he stormed up to me to scream at me for it. I tend to avoid him. I'll just say that we don't get along as well as we could.

"'Bout time," he mutters. We glare at each other for a moment until he pushes past me and enters our room. I know he'll scold me harshly later, however it seems as if he has something more important to take care of now. It could be anything, considering I was probably one of the least important things in his life. Perhaps I was somewhere near the value of the annoying drunk man who will occasionally come out at night and sing 'Mary had a Little Lamb' until he falls unconscious. I would think that he aggravates Kankuro more, for he's usually attempting to squeeze some sleep into his busy life, while I only sit at that table and get a headache. And people wonder why I'm so ill tempered all the time.

---

Gaara looks absolutely nothing like his sibling(s). They bare no resemblance. If that girl is his sister, then how in the world did he get that hair of his? Or how did _she _get _her _hair? Or maybe it was his brother. It's possible to not have the same hair color of either of your parents though. My friend in China had black hair along with her brother, mother, and father, but her sister's was a light brown. (1)

Still, I could see some similar traits between his brother and his sister. I'll call her his sister, regardless of whether or not she actually is. I could always ask Gaara…

"SHIT!"

It came from the room Gaara's brother went in. I'm immediately concerned.

"Is he okay?" I question.

"Why the hell would _I _know?"

I flinch. I didn't anticipate his reaction to be so… nasty. I get the feeling something is wrong.

I don't get the opportunity to think this through because a second later, Gaara's brother (Karnoku, right?) comes bursting out.

"Gaara! What the fuck did you do with those papers?" he seethes, approaching his younger sibling.

I can't help but gasp. He said the F word!

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Gaara responds coolly, paying no notice to my intake of breath.

"Yes, you do, you dumb ass! I need those papers for my new job! You already made me late by locking me out! I'm doing this for Temari! If I get this job, she can quit one of hers and rest a bit, you spoiled brat! I don't see you supporting this family at all! I don't even know why we still feed you! You're lucky Temari likes you, or else I'd have you in the orphanage in a blink of an eye!"

I want to cover my ears and block all of it out. I hate it when people shout. It makes scared. I start shaking all over. I feel like crying.

"I didn't do anything with those papers, I swear!"

"DON'T YOU DARE LIE TO ME!"

He now does something I would never dream of. He slaps Gaara across the face. The younger of the two clutches he cheek, but doesn't complain.

"I told you I didn't do anything with the papers, jackass! Why do automatically think everything's _my _fault!"

No, no. Stop. Please stop. There are other ways of solving your problems. There's no need to fight.

"Why do I think that? Because everything is! If you weren't born, none of this would have happened! We would've been a normal family! And I don't see you doing anything to repay us for still caring for you, you monster!"

"I'M NOT A MONSTER! IT'S NOT MY FAULT! SHUT THE FUCK UP! YOU'RE JUST AS BAD AS HIM!"

I can't take it any longer. I begin sobbing uncontrollably.

"Stop it, the both of you! You guys are brothers!" I pause to heave in a giant breath that hurts my throat. "Fighting only makes everyone upset!"

I have to stop now. I'm crying too hard to say anything more. Still, it works. I don't hear any screaming. Instead I hear a door open and close. I can't see anything anymore for tears blocking my vision.

I feel a pair of arms wrap around my body. Is Gaara hugging me? I don't care. I just throw myself on him and bawl into his shirt. I bet I look like a moron, getting so riled up about a fight I'm not even involved with. I think Gaara definitely owes me some explanations after I calm down.

Eventually, my cries die down. Gaara is stroking my head peacefully. He's hushing me quietly. I hadn't noticed before.

"Gaara," I whisper hoarsely. "Why did he do that? Why did he seem like he hated you so much?"

"I… I… he was just mad. That was all."

I know it's a lie. I want Gaara to tell me what's going on in his life. I want to help him.

"Gaara. He slapped you. He was more than temporarily mad. That was built up anger he was letting out. Tell me what's wrong, please."

He's trying to wriggle out of the hug, but I wrap my arms firmly around his waist. He's not escaping.

"Gaara, trust me. I trust you. It's not fair that you don't trust me. I told you about what my parents made me do. I want to know, Gaara. I want to help."

"No one can help me. I can't trust anyone either. You should go home. It's almost six." There's no emotion in his voice. It's killing me. "You can go online and study some more English."

He isn't looking at me. His fingers are prying mine apart so he can be freed.

"Gaara," I say. He momentarily drops the task of detaching my arms from his waist and glances at me, moving only his eyes. "Never mind. My cousin's waiting."

I remove my arms and leave him standing in the kitchen section of his apartment.

---

The weekend passes without incident. I got injured, but thankfully it's on my back, so no one will notice the wound. I keep on thinking of how cold and unfeeling Hinata's last words to me were. So distant…

Like I am to her. She had revealed her whole story to me. She had broken down in front of me, cried in my arms, and I'm refusing to tell her anything at all. She's earned the right to that knowledge. I can't help treating her like I don't give a damn about her. It's simply part of my nature. I had rarely been given any love; therefore I had no idea how to show it to others. Ironic, really. The boy with the love scar barely has any impression of the foreign emotion.

No, the character on my forehead is not a tattoo. I don't get why people think so. It's a scar from a long time ago. My "father" had carved it into my forehead to show that I was only to love myself and to fight only for myself. It had never completely healed, turning to a faded red instead.

"_Hey you!_"

I spin around to the sound of the voice. Is that a boy or a girl? I can see he/she has some masculine features and has a fairly deep voice, but that hair is really confusing me. It's called a hair cut.

"_You're Mistress Neji's friend!_" he (?) claims. "_What did you do to her?_"

"_Nothing._" Was this her cousin? I do remember her telling me he's a bit overprotective at lunch on Thursday.

"_I doubt that._" Yeah, well, too bad.

"_Why?_" I feel a need to add on a question of what gender he/she was, but refrain. I don't want to make it more infuriated.

"_She's been completely out of it. She's shut herself in her room and won't come out. She's barely eating anything and she missed a very important meeting. This is nothing like her at all, as you should know, but she looked very displeased when I had walked her home from _your _house. She described you to me. Now I want to know what happened there and why she's so… so… why she's acting this way,_" he demands. He was definitely Hinata's cousin then. Were all Hyuuga's forced to act like the opposite gender? Maybe I misheard Hinata and she actually told me her cousin was female.

"_I haven't the faintest idea. May I see her after school today?_" There was no way I was going to telling her (I've decided it's a girl by this point) all of the shit that goes on between my brother and me.

"_No, you may not. I want to know what's wrong with her._"

"_Yeah. And I want your gender-confused ass out of here! Seriously, why the hell is your voice so deep?_" That probably wasn't the wisest response. I see some veins bulge on Ms. Let's Baffle Everyone with my Unknown Gender.

"_My. Voice. Is. Deep. Because. I. Am. Male._" He seems to be too enraged to speak the sentence without pauses.

"Oh shit," I cuss in my native tongue. Unfortunately, I have forgotten that because he's Hinata's cousin, he probably speaks Chinese too.

"You! You are corrupting my innocent little cousin! How dare you!" Okay. This guy's officially more bothersome as the musical bum on the street. At least he shuts up.

"I don't give a damn! Just let me see her!"

"Never! You will never lay your filthy hands upon my dear Mistress!"

I raise my middle finger on my "filthy" right hand at him, smirking.

"You bastard!"

"Yes?"

Wait a minute. Damn it. I need to get on this guy's good side if I want to talk to Hinata's. Why do I realize that now? How the hell am I going to get on the good side of someone who hates my guts? Well, usually guys like this are able to convince with a certain strategy…

---

(2) Okay. Three words: What. The. Hell. I come down to Mistress Neji's school to find out what this bastard had done to harm her and now he's shamelessly flirting with me.

"You know, I don't know why on Earth I was thinking I was thinking you were a girl. You're so muscular," he says, smirking at me seductively and, gulp, admiring my body.

"Um… I… uh…" Truth be told, I was still unsure which ways my doors swung.

"Maybe we should get to know each other better so I don't make any more of those silly mistakes." He's now uncomfortably close to me. He glides his hand down my face, stopping at my chin. He gets up on toes to reach my lips and brushes against them with his own lightly.

I have to admit the boy's pretty cute, minus the eyeliner. His nose especially. In fact, I find I can't tear my eyes off him.

Wait. I'm about two or three years older than him, and I have no intention of dating anyone that young. Still, I've always thought pale skin is attractive… Oh. What would Master Hiashi do if he saw me in such a disgraceful act? I wonder what has possessed destiny to do such a cruel thing.

"I think we should definitely spend some time together alone in my room."

With the way I'm blushing, I feel and most likely resemble a lovesick schoolgirl now. I feel weak in my knees from the boys gaze. It's so focused, so concentrated. Oh god. Please tell me I'm not falling for this asshole. Oh please. This can't be my fate! Why does my cousin have to befriend probably the _only _gay boy in her school? Why does he have to be so good-looking? I have to distract him. I have to get out of this situation as soon as possible.

"Y-y-you c-can s-s-s-see Neji after s-school t-today. I'll p-p-pick you up," I stammer.

"Okay. See you later, cutie!" He winks and struts off.

I can't get any intelligent thought in my head. I'm too busy chanting under my breath.

"Must not stare at his ass. Must not stare at his ass."

---

One- Yes, this _is _possible. I actually have a friend just like that. Her brother, mother, and father have brown hair, yet her sister's hair is really light blond. Lighter than mine, that's for sure. My hair's dirty blond. I'm getting off track.

Two-Yeah. I just _had _to switch to Neji's p.o.v.

Psychoticbunny: Oh my god. I totally wasn't planning that whole scene with Gaara flirting with Neji. I was giggling for the whole time I was writing it. Oh my god. That was so much fun. Well, the next chapter should be out in a day or two! Bye!


	5. Chapter 5

Psychoticbunny: Hello! I'm back with chapter five! I've actually got nothing to say so I'll skip to the review replies.

SnowyNight- I know his family life is really bad now, but it will get better.

Disclaimer/Warnings: No, I don't own anything so I can't give you Gaara's earlobe or any other body parts of any other characters. You know the warnings so I'm not to test my tiny attention span.

---

I can tell Hinata's cousin is in deep inner conflict. Now, normally I wouldn't concern myself with some gay idiot's mental argument, however, this was a special occasion. Why? The inner conflict was about my ass. He'll extend his hand a bit, but then will pull it back, muttering something about fate, destiny, and Master Hiashi. I wish I had befriended someone with less creepy relatives.

I cough, attempting to draw his attention away from my behind. It doesn't work. Damn it. That means I'll have to resort to another act to distract him. A horrible and gruesome act so terrifying I am hesitant to mention it. That's right: I'll have to strike up a conversation. Cue collective gasp.

"So…" I begin, not really having any clue where I'm going with this. "A duck walks into a bar," Okay, a joke. Not too bad. He's looking at my face now, at least, "and asks, 'Hey, got any grapes?' The bar tender looks up and says, 'No, this is a bar. We don't have any grapes.' So the duck walks out and the next day it walks back in and asks, 'Hey, got any grapes?' The bar tender says, 'No, I already told you! This is a bar! We don't have any grapes!'" I have to pause now. I can't remember if I'm supposed to wait two or three days. I decide to wait two. "So the duck walks out and the next day the duck walks in and asks, 'Hey, got any grapes?' The bar tender says… uh… oh yeah. The bar tender says, 'No! For the last time, we do not have any grapes! And if you come back here one more time and ask for grapes, I'll nail your feet to the ground!' So the duck walks out and the next day walks back in and… uh… well…" Damn it. I forgot the punch line. (1) "Why don't you tell a joke?" I offer, pleading that he won't go back to his previous ministrations.

"Um… I don't really know a lot of… well… What to you call two banana peels? Slippers! Aha! Get it? Ahaha! Ah…" I really have a knack for making people feel unnerved. "'Cause you wear slippers and you slip on banana peels and…" You know your jokes a failure once you have to start explaining it.

I pat his arm in pity to tell him, "You suck, you loser," but it seems as if he takes it more like, "At least you tried." Hey, you've got to give him a point for optimism. He goes back to my ass. Oh well. It lasted for a few minutes. Now I'll be able to sympathize with Temari when she complains about perverted guys at her school.

"Okay. We're here," I alert him once we arrive at the monstrosity of a fence. I still can't believe Hinata lives here. I thought all rich people were really obnoxious like that Sasuke Uchiha, but I guess I was mistaken.

He tears his gaze away from a certain part of my body to get us into the mansion. I jump as the fence opens. It's startling.

"Don't worry," Unnamed Perverted Cousin comforts, finally growing back the backbone he had lost when I started flirting with him and places an arm around my waist, beaming at me like the dumb ass he is. I try to smile back at him, but it comes out more like a bloodthirsty maniacal grin and I know the backbone begins to retreat as his grip slackens. Sometimes it good that I can't do anything without bearing a strange resemblance with an extremely dangerous madman.

"Well, let's go," he states. He's pulling me into his body. Apparently he hasn't morphed back into an invertebrate. I reluctantly rest my head on his chest, controlling my urge to brutally strangle the asshole. Instead, I let my anger out by running my fingers "gently" across his face. I think the one near his nose might leave a scar. For once I'm thankful I can't afford a nail clipper.

At the end of the pathway (which wasn't as long when I walked up it with Hinata), Unnamed Perverted Cousin seems to feel that it's unwise to parade around in such a prestigious house while groping a young boy. I've settled on not discovering his name in order to degrade him, even if it's only in my mind.

"Oh. I forgot to tell you, but the name's Neji," he says, holding the front door open for me. Well, there goes that plan, flying out the window and crashing through several heavy objects until it collides painfully with a brick wall. Maybe I was taking this too seriously. Wait a minute.

"Isn't that Hi- I mean, your cousin's name?" He looks at me suspiciously, but shrugs it off.

"Yeah. Do you know what Neji means in Japanese?"

Yeah, you moron. "No, could you tell me?"

"Screw. Like with hammers and nails and stuff. I was named it because after my father died, I handled it strongly, not crying or causing too much trouble." He waits a bit before finishing, expecting to load him with pity and sympathy. Too bad. That sounds pretty good, compared to my life. Dad dead? Yeah, I could live with that. He continues, "Because of my actions, I was granted with that name because of being sturdy. Mistress was named that because they wanted her to be just like me, physically tough _and _strong-willed."

I never knew screws were so insecure about their gender.

"What did you just say?" he exclaims. Damn. I just said that out loud, didn't I? "I keep my hair long because I like having long hair. I am not insecure about being male! How dare you insult my name?"

I seriously need to gain back all of the pride that's meeting the same destiny as my plan. (2)

I giggle (kill me now) and lick all the way from his chin to his ear, running up his jaw line. It's disgusting in my opinion, but he doesn't seem to mind. Weirdo. Do I really have the right to call someone that?

He shivers and takes my hand, half-leading-half-dragging me through the many hallways it would be quite easy to get lost in. I think if I touched his face at this point, I might burn my hand, judging by the bright red on his cheeks.

We're nearing Hinata's room; it's at the end of this corridor. I'm eager to get away from Neji and see my best friend. Best friend? Yes, best friend. It's so awkward to have such a close companion after my life of solitude. When I think about it, an incredible amount of things have happened during this week. Last Monday, I never considered that I'd have such a strong connection with the new girl that I would long for her company so much, actually touch her, hug her.

"Okay babe. Do you want me to come with you?" offers that deep voice that makes me have the need to hang myself. Babe? Does he _want _vomit stained clothes? I take that as a yes as he plants a delicate hand on my shoulder.

"No thank you," I refuse, removing his hand.

"Okay. I'll stay here though." Is this guy stalking me now? "I hope she lets you in. She hasn't even spoken to anyone since this morning."

"Hi-Neji, Neji. Are you all right in there? Everyone's really worried in here and we want you to come out. I promise I'll tell you everything if you come out. That's what I was planning to do anyway. I just needed to think it over. Hinata! Please!"

She's not answering, but I can't resort to any of my other tactics, not with a certain cousin that gets more problematic by the second. Then I realize that I don't really care so I do it, regardless of the over protective relative watching me like a hawk.

I knock, I yell, I kick. Neji's staring at me in awe or anger. I'm not paying any attention to him. Hinata won't respond.

Finally, I turn the knob and the door opens instantaneously. _Boy_, I feel stupid. Guess this is what it's like to be Hinata. Speaking of her…

"Hinata!" I call into the deserted room. Wait, deserted? She couldn't have…

I spy several sheets and blankets hanging out the window. She ran away? Why? Where? I jump out, managing to grasp some sheets, and slide down. Neji sticks his torso out the window after me so he can shout something, but I tune it out. Where on Earth could Hinata have gone? She wouldn't have gone to my apartment, would she? Did she have any idea of how many people there could hurt her?

I sprint off in that direction. I try to ignore my worries bouncing all around my head. She's going to be okay. She's going to be okay. Why do I feel like crying?

It seems to take much more time than usual to reach my home. I search around my bag for my key, but remember I left it on the kitchen table.

"Shit," I sigh. Temari or Kankuro could have let her in or worse, one of the neighbors. No, don't think about that. I press my head against the cool glass on the door and sink to the floor, tracing the character engraved on my forehead. I bite my lip to prevent crying out from a mixture of frustration and defeat.

I let my eyes wander to the side and they rest on a beer bottle someone has dropped. It's shattered into millions of pieces. I spot one thin and about as long as a toothpick. That would do.

I scramble over to it and seize it greedily, as if it's some rare treasure. Well, it's the closest thing you'll get to treasure around here. I feel some of the other shards stab my hands, but pay them no mind as I frantically jiggle the segment I chose in the keyhole. Come on, come on. I hear it click and push the door open so violently I'm surprised it doesn't fly off its hinges.

I race up the staircase. I still haven't fully recovered from my mad dash here so I'm slowed, but make it up in good time nonetheless.

She's not here. It was stupid of me, really, to think that she'd come here. Although I've told her it countless times, Hinata isn't dumb. She knows she can't get in without a key. It was really, exceedingly stupid. I bang my fist into the wall beside me.

I hear a shriek from downstairs. Wait. Could it be that Hinata accidentally mixed up 403 with 303? It's possible. Then why is she screaming?

I storm down the stairs twice as fast as normal from the adrenaline rush I'm getting. Black hair! Yes! But no. It's long, at least waist-length. It's not Hinata. It's another woman with dark eyes and paper-white skin. She's pulled inside the apartment of her captor, a sleazy old man.

I drop down on my knees. How long has it been since I've wept? I can't recall, but everything's fuzzy. I can't think properly with my body shaking slightly with silent sobs. It's my fault. Everything is my fault. If I had only told her about my life she would never have barricaded herself in her room. Now, who knows what had happened to her? Was she safe? Had she found some haven she could reside at? What if she wasn't? Was she injured, bleeding in the corner of some dark and unknown ally? Had she been raped? Was she… could she be dead?

"Hush Gaara," a female voice comforts.

Or is she here right now?

---

I kick some of the shards of glass around. I'm waiting for Gaara's sister to come back out of the building. After I escaped from my room, I had run around town for hours, apprehending I had no clue where Gaara's apartment was located. I stopped in a nearby flower shop to attempt to find some directions. Instead, I found someone better: Gaara's sister, Temari (she told me her name when I asked her on the way here). Her boss, a kind, good-looking mother of Blond Girl from my class, let her have a break to take me to her apartment.

While walking here, I briefly wondered if Gaara could have headed off to my house to see me. I quickly got rid of that thought. Gaara could barely stand me. Still, I left the door unlocked when I fled from my room so he would be aware of it, if he did come.

Over the weekend, I had tried to forget about Gaara. I would act as aloof as he did. I'd talk to him as little as possible until he felt really bad and explained everything as an apology. I would look to be considering whether or not to let him befriend me once more and then allow it, hesitantly. My imagination got the better of me, and I set off to find him, completely overlooking the fact that I couldn't even recollect his apartment number. 303, maybe?

I'm yanked out of my thoughts as I'm pulled into a lung-crushing embrace. It's kind of nice…

"You dumb ass!"

Never mind.

"I'll leave you two then. I have to get back to work." I hear the crunching sounds of Temari's footsteps.

"You idiot! You complete idiot!"

"Would you stop insulting me?" I try to push him back, but he's a lot stronger than me. I go missing on a big hunt for him and all he'll ever do is perform verbal abuse.

"I was so worried!"

He was… worried? About me?

"You're so dumb, running away like that! You could have been hurt or raped or murdered! Do you have any idea how much you frightened me? Thank goodness you're safe!" He hugs me tighter, as if I'll slip out of his grasp.

I feel something wet near my ear. He's crying? He was just afraid that I had been harmed all this time?

"I thought you hated me. I thought you didn't care," I tell him.

"I'm sorry, Hinata. I'm so sorry. I never meant to make you feel like that. I just can't help it. I don't know how to express it."

I want to stay like this forever, but Gaara lets me go. I observe him while he breathes deeply in relief. His face and eyes are red and puffy from crying and there are some cuts and scratches on his hands.

"We should go inside. It's dangerous out here," he says and reaches for my hand. I grab onto his, both of us blushing from the contact. For once, he doesn't stop smiling.

"You look nice when you smile," I comment.

He faces towards the staircase and leads me up them, but I know he's pleased about the remark.

We make our way to his apartment in silence, but it's a comfortable silence. Sometimes I wish time could freeze and we could stay like this forever. Gaara being happy forever. He definitely deserves it. However, the peace and warmth can't stay forever.

Gaara's expression turns serious as we sit down at the kitchen table.

"Hinata, I've thought it over and… well… I'll tell you about my family. Do you still want to know?" he adds hopefully at the end. I nod and he goes on, less cheerfully.

"Well, you already know one of our problems. My relationship with my brother is not the best one. He kind of sides with my dad, while my sister, that's the blond girl, sides with me."

"Sides with you on what?" I inquire.

"Well, I'll tell you the story from the beginning. Once, my family was actually really content. There was a mother, a father, a sister, and a brother. My father had a steady office job. Not too exciting, no, but good enough. It supported the family and they were happy despite the fact that they were on the poor side. It's really amazing that one more child could ruin all of that.

"Let me see, Temari was five, Kankuro seven when I was born. So Temari was only four and Kankuro six when they found out their mother was pregnant again. Or maybe Kankuro was still seven. I know Temari's birthday, but I never bothered with his. Not like I would get him a present anyway.

"Well, moving right along, they did some tests and found out the baby was not my father's."

"What do you mean?" I interrupt.

"I mean, they found out my mother hadn't told anyone, but she had been raped one night, on her way home from a friends house."

"Raped? What does raped mean? I never heard that word before," I disrupt again.

"Raped means she was forced to have sex with some stranger, and the result was yours truly." He sounds very angry as he says this. "They decided not to get an abortion and- oh for god's sake!" He sees my puzzled face. "An abortion is when they remove the baby before it's born."

"What about the stork?" I ask. He looks at me strangely. "I mean, where does the stork fit in all of this? You know, the bird that delivers babies?"

He's glaring now. "There is no stork. You know what? Now isn't the time for a lesson is sexual education. Let me just finish the story." I nod and he continues.

"My mother died while delivering me and my father blames me for her death. So does my brother, and even Temari does at certain times, even though she'll deny it. Hell, sometimes _I _feel like it's my fault."

He stops there. "I'm sorry," I say, at a loss for words.

"You… you have to promise not to tell anyone this part, okay?" I nod. "Seriously, you can't tell no matter what."

"We'll pinky promise," I suggest, wrapping my finger around his. He looks kind of annoyed and probably thinks this is a waste of time, but permits it.

"Okay. My father beats us. Physically and mentally," he admits.

My eyes widen. He beats them? That's… that's horrible, terrible, beyond that. I want to tell him to tell someone, but I don't think that will happen, and it will probably just make him more upset.

"Gaara, you… I never knew," I finally say.

"Well, if you knew, what would be the point in telling you?" he retorts.

I move my index finger over the character on his forehead. Love. If you didn't know him better, you could have mistaken Gaara for some sap.

He takes my hand and leans in towards my face, touching his forehead to mine. For a second, I panic. What if he's going to kiss me? But he doesn't do anything. He just stares into my eyes. I feel like he can see through my eyes into my soul with those turquoise orbs. They would look bizarre on anyone else but Gaara.

We stay like that for a bit and I decide to tell him some information of my own.

"Listen Gaara." He lets go of my hand and leans back. I'm saddened, but push it aside. "I haven't told you something. I'm… I'm getting married."

He gives me the biggest, grandest "You idiot" look ever to grace the unworthy universe with its magnificent presence.

"It wasn't my choice! My father needs me to so the main family can stay in control of the Hyuuga clan!"

Now it's my turn to act like Gaara's the world's largest fool ever. "In the Hyuuga clan, there's a branch family and a main family. The branch family is supposed to serve the main family because they're in control, but if they get control over the Hyuuga clan, that portion will become the main family and we'll become the branch family. Because you need a male to run the family, Neji is the next choice unless I marry, but I have no idea who my fiancé is because I shut myself in my room the day I was supposed to meet him."

He stares at me a bit and then threatens, "If you invite me, I show up naked and flash people, and then replace the flowers for the flower girls with dead, bloody rabbits."

Oh joy. I can tell who's going to be the first person we send the invitation to.

"That won't be necessary Gaara. My father doesn't really know you exist because I rarely ever talk to him, and when I do it's about taking control over the Hyuuga clan."

"Speaking of your family, shouldn't you get back to them? I'm sure Neji's told everyone that you escaped through your window."

"Oh yes I- wait. How do you know I escaped through my window?" I ask. He couldn't have know unless…

"I went there to see you. Of course, I didn't succeed in the seeing you part, but Temari found you in the end. I can't believe those dumb asses never thought to just open the door."

Yes, those people who were now probably alerting the police and sending out search parties to search for the lost heir of the Hyuuga clan. However, they won't be able to find her, seeing as they have no indication that she is acquainted with some boy from the slums and is currently safe in his home. For all I knew, my father could have the FBI searching all over the country, knowing how powerful the Hyuuga clan is.

"Gaara, I should be getting home. Would you… um… would you walk me?"

He accepts and we set off, hand in hand.

---

I leave Hinata before she opens the gates, not wanting to meet up with Neji. At least not before I'm going to eat dinner.

"Goodbye Gaara. I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks for walking me home," she says, as polite as ever.

"Anytime," I reply.

She lifts her finger to a button on the intercom, but I stop her.

"Um… Hinata… I just… well…" I can't believe I'm getting so nervous. I swallow down my fear, peck her on the cheek, and run off.

---

One- I'm just finishing the joke for those who care. The duck walks back in the next day and says, "Hey, got any nails?" The bar tender looks up and says, "No." "Hey, got any grapes?" Yeah. Okay. Now that that's settled…

Two- Neji's rubbing off on Gaara!

Psychoticbunny: That was really sappy. It was kind of boring to write. I can't wait until I'm done with the sixth chapter because that means I can go back to my other story that isn't realistic fiction. It's not really fantasy so I can't call it that, but it sure isn't realistic. So I'm happy I'm almost done with my three chapters for this one. Review please! You'll get cookies! XD


	6. Chapter 6

Psychoticbunny: I've been procrastinating typing this up since Friday, but I got it done anyway. And now it's time to go back to The Axel Prescription. But before I do review replies, I just want to say that this chapter will be switching from Hinata to Sasuke's p.o.v. instead of Hinata to Gaara's. Got it? Good. And sorry if Sasuke's ooc. Now. Review replies.

SnowyNight- Thanks. I thought it came out too sappy, but people don't seem to mind.

Disclaimer: At least I own Naruto on opposite day…

Warnings: All your usual warnings plus I've been watching a lot of shojou anime, so it might come out kind of girly. I blame Loveless.

---

Screwed. Yeah, I'd say that pretty much sums up my life. Serious father? Check. Overfriendly mother? Check. Genius older brother? Check. Genius younger brother? Hm. We seem to be missing something. So of course, because the younger brother merely passes his classes with measly full marks and excels at sports, we must be rid of him! Oh marriage to some girl with a bunch of money? Yeah, that works. At least he can be of _some _use.

"You're meeting her today after school (1)," my father informs me once more. It's not like I'm going to forget it after three seconds, like a fish. My mother senses my discomfort and flashes me a sympathetic smile.

"Remember, we need this money," he tells me.

No, we actually don't need this money. The Uchiha clan has _too much_ money, if you ask me, but no. We always are in need of more and more and more. I hope my father drowns in all of it one day.

"Good morning, Father, Mother, Sasu-chan," Ita-nii greets as he enters the kitchen. I growl a bit at the nickname, but he just laughs playfully. I can't help but crack a smile with him.

"Itachi, son. I am extremely pleased with you're results from college," my father compliments. Ita-nii just came home from a trip sponsored by the college he went to last night. It was to celebrate the graduating class. Ita-nii is only sixteen, but he graduated from high school at the age of twelve. He really is a genius. It's no wonder I can't compare.

"Yes, congratulations," my mother says, beaming proudly at him. She turns her attention to me. She's going to admire my A on my last math test and my basketball team's win at the last game. "Sasuke-kun, be sure to clean up your room." She goes back to Ita-nii, showering him with praise.

I trudge back up to my room. Of course, no one cares about me when Ita-nii is there to outshine everyone around him. It's not like I hate him or anything. I love my nii-san. It's just that it can get frustrating when I try so hard and he barely works at all, yet he gets all of the attention from my parents.

I start pulling up the sheets and straightening them out. The only time I get noticed is when I'm cooking with my mother. However, my father has forbid it, thinking I would become a homosexual if I continued. I really wish he hadn't.

I pull up the blanket to the sheets and move on to my pillow. Cooking is my forte, my hobby, my escape from the world, and then he snatches it away in a matter of seconds. I can still hear the argument my mother and father had afterwards.

I gather up some homework I've left on the floor from last night and pack it in my backpack. I had eavesdropped on the fight. It was mostly father saying it was a waste of my time and my mother saying it was the only thing I was good at. She said I should continue it because I was happiest cooking. My father disagreed and said I should find something more useful to do with my time.

I pick up stray clothes and drop them into the laundry shoot. That was the end of it. I would have to find something else to occupy my time. A chef wasn't an important enough job, apparently, for an Uchiha. Why can't I be a normal child? Why can't I be a Nara, a Yamanaka, a Haruno, an Akamichi, anything?

My room's clean, but I prance around, pretending to dust off as many items as I encounter. I've always loved cleaning too. There was something about getting everything neat and orderly that was extremely satisfying. Ironic, really, that my best friend is a complete slob. Uzumaki Naruto, an odd name for an odd person. Seriously, who's named fishcake? I understand we have Itachi as ferret, but fishcake?

I shake it off as I check the clock. It's about time to get to school so I swing my backpack over my arm and head out.

---

I bite my lip nervously and proceed in chewing it even after it starts bleeding. Gaara's heading up the sidewalk now; I'd recognize that hair anywhere. It's not that I'm mad at him for kissing me, but I am embarrassed. And I'm supposed to be married!

I squeak out of anxiety as he stops before me, holds up a hand, and says, "Yo."

"Uh… yo?" I repeat, raising my hand weakly.

He doesn't mention anything about last night. There's a dead silence.

I then spot a figure a while down the street. That's odd. Gaara and I always arrive ridiculously early. Hey, it's Pretty Boy! Now, what did Gaara say his name is? Sakura? Yeah, it was Sakura.

"_Hi Sakura!_" I call extra loud, waving my hand energetically and releasing all of the built up pressure. "_How are you?_" I hope he can understand my accent because Gaara insults it every time I speak, but Gaara insults everything I do. In fact, I can hear him muttering about how I sound like an idiotic tourist now.

Sakura finally gets close enough for me to read his expression: anger. Pure rage. What did I do? Were people _that _offended by accents?

"_What did you just call me?_" he asks furiously.

"_Um… Sakura. Your name, right?_"

He stares at me with an unreadable expression and then says something that sounds just like what a certain redhead would.

"_You are the biggest idiot ever._"

Now where have I heard that line before?

"You are the biggest idiot ever," Gaara notifies me as he turns to face me.

Oh yes. That's where.

"_Then… that's _not _you're name?_"

"_I'm Sasuke. Sakura's the pink-haired ditz._"

"_Oh_," I say. I don't know what a _pink-haired _or a _ditz_ is. I look towards Gaara, trying to communicate my confusion my telepathy, but, surprise, it doesn't work. I find pyrokinesis doesn't work either as I try to do that afterwards as I find him smirking at my mistake. What now? Am I unable to do telekinesis too (2)? This day gets worse and worse.

"_You… uh… you…_" I don't know how to say it in English. "You look unhappy. Are you feeling all right?"

"_What?_" Guess he doesn't speak Chinese.

Gaara suddenly says something to the raven-haired boy. Yay! Gaara to the rescue! I have no idea what he's saying though. I hope he's not calling me a moron or anything. But I'd recognize if he were insulting me. He's done it about fifty billion times during our lessons.

Sasuke seems to understand. He's nodding his head and then replying with something else I can't understand.

"He says that he's feeling fine, thank you," he translates.

"Oh. Can you tell him that he tell me whatever's bothering him?" I request.

"I should get paid for this," Gaara grumbles before communicating the sentence to Sasuke. Gaara sounds so, for lack of a better word, cool when he speaks English. The words are so smooth and flawless. I can tell he too has an accent by comparing his speech to our teacher and Sasuke's, but it's so much less noticeable than mine.

"Okay, he says that he's really fine. You need to stop being so friendly; he'll think you're weird."

I blush. "Oh. Okay." Then, I remember about the meeting with my fiancé my father had pressed upon me. "Gaara, today I'm meeting my fiancé! After school. I hope he speaks Chinese though…"

"One hundred bucks per hour," he replies.

"What?" I ask. What did money have to do with my fiancé?

"One hundred bucks per hour. That's what I'll charge if you want me to come along and translate everything. I know you have the money, and this job is really annoying, so pay me one hundred bucks per hour," he explains.

"In your dreams," I retort, giving him a playful tap on the head.

Sasuke looks at us quizzically as Gaara counters with his own tap and we begin doing it back and forth. Since no explanation is offered, I see Sasuke head off to the classroom out of the corner of my eye as Gaara lands a particularly hard blow.

"Ow!" I cry out as I grab the spot, tears forming in my eyes.

"Ah! I'm so sorry Hinata!"

"Oh… um… that's okay Gaara. Gaara? Gaara!" I feel soft lips pressing against the bruise and it suddenly stops hurting. "Gaara…"

Why? Why does it feel so nice when he kisses me? Why does my heart soar every time he hugs me? Why are all of my feelings jumbled up like this? Whenever I try to find an answer, my head only hurts. Gaara…

---

It's going to snow soon…

Sometimes I feel like there's a pianist inside my head. He's playing all sorts of music, depending on my mood and the atmosphere. I can never tell which piece is which, and what musician it's by, but it calms me, the gentle pressing of the pure white keys mixed with the tainted black ones. It's almost like ying-yang.

"Ita-nii! When will we be there?" I ask impatiently.

He chuckles at my immaturity before replying. "Soon, otouto, soon."

The pianist is playing some fast music to match my anxiety.

We finally stop before a huge white gate. Ita-nii has accompanied me because both my mother and my father are busy. I'm happy. It's been a long time since we've hung out.

"_Who is this_?" a voice over the intercom demands, breaking my thought process. Stupid distractions.

"_I am Uchiha Itachi. I am escorting Uchiha Sasuke. We have a meeting with Hyuuga Neji,_" Ita-nii answers.

Hyuuga Neji? Wait. Isn't that the new girl in my class? Wait, no. It wouldn't be her. There's obviously two Hyuuga Nejis or something. (3)

I'm pulled out of my thoughts once more as the gate creaks open. I stay right behind Ita-nii as we travel up the winding path that has revealed itself. I hide my face in his jacket as a serious man greets us at the door.

Ita-nii's speaking a different language now. My father mentioned they spoke another language. Korean maybe? I can't recall…

"Come, Sasuke. Don't fall behind now," Ita-nii says. Too late for that. I hurry up and resume my place hiding behind him. I dislike this place. It feels so… emotionless. There are no paintings on the wall, no pictures. If I didn't know better, I would think this place is uninhabited. Where's the personality? "Sasuke, get out of my shadow and walk beside me. You look ridiculous, hiding behind me like that. I'm sure the girl doesn't bite." He chuckles again.

I nod a bit and warily step out, but grab his hand for some comfort. That's odd; his hand has tensed up a bit.

I shake off the gesture and compare the Hyuuga manor to the Uchiha manor.

It's bigger, that's for sure. We're going through more hallways than I can count. Again, it's all empty. In my house, you'll encounter a picture every two steps you take. Or maybe that's just because my mother has a fetish for taking pictures.

I squeeze my brother's hand a bit as we near our destination. He pries my fingers off his. I always used to hold his hand… Had something changed? Where is the warmth and safety I feel whenever I'm around him? Why does he feel like a stranger now?

"Sasuke, focus. I'll have to leave after you go. I'll pick you up in an hour. Don't dirty your clothes. I believe Hiashi-sama -that's Neji's father- has hired a translator. Goodbye. I promise I'll pick you up."

"Bye," I mutter as I watch his figure get smaller and smaller as he advances down the hallway. "Ita-nii…" But what's the use in saying his name when he's already disappeared from sight?

I sigh and take a deep breath before entering the room. I gasp.

---

After a life of wearing baggy shirts, shorts, and pants, it's very awkward to be wearing something as elegant as a silk kimono. It's a lavender color, just like my eyes, with pretty little baby blue and turquoise dragons embroidered all over. The obi is also baby blue with little lavender and turquoise dragons. My socks feel weird because they separate my big toe from the others so I can wear special flip-flops with them. I almost feel like a princess.

It turns out my fiancé is Japanese so I was forced into the get-up to make him feel more at home or something. I just feel like I'm dressed up in a fancy bathrobe, but that's just my opinion. An opinion that apparently doesn't matter.

"Ge ge, I'm scared," I tell Ge ge. He's there to translate and also to make me feel more at ease. I hope I don't mess this up.

"Don't worry. Just remember everything your mother has taught you and you'll do fine. And even on the slight chance you don't, I'm right here for you." He flashes me a reassuring smile. I love Ge ge so much.

The door slides open and I gasp.

---

"_S-s-sasuke?! You! Fiance! What?_"

"_What on Earth are you doing Gaara?_"

He's pressing his face against the wall, apparently eavesdropping on what's going on in the next room.

"_I'm marrying _you" I ask in a mix of disbelief and horror.

"_What? No! You're marrying Hinata! I mean Neji! I mean… oh whatever! You're in the wrong room! Neji's in the next room! Wait… You're marrying Neji?_"

"_I'm not sure! I'm confused! I just want to meet my fiancé and get out of here!_"

"_Oh. I think you need to go to the room next to this one in that case._" He points to the wall he's sitting next to. So I need to go to the next room so he can eavesdrop? I decide to ignore it as I think of the delicious, homemade meal my mother will make for me once this is over.

---

"You! You're Gaara's older brother!" I exclaim at the familiar face.

"Oh you…" He seems to recognize me from Friday.

"Um… excuse me, but what are you doing here?" Ge ge pipes up.

"I'm the translator. Master Hiashi said that I'd be translating instead of a Hyuuga Neji. That would be you, right?" He turns his gaze from me to Ge ge.

"Yes, that would be me, but I thought we had arranged for me to translate."

"Well, he said that he changed his mind."

Ge ge looks unsure, but exits nonetheless. Now I feel the pressure increase at least ten-fold, especially when I see the door begin to slide open again.

---

What a beautiful man. He has long brown hair that swirls around him with every step he takes. He stares into my eyes with lavender pupil-less orbs momentarily and then makes his way down the hallway. I have to stand motionless for a second to take in what just happened. I sigh and shake it off. I have a fiancé to meet. I slide the door open.

The pianist falters in his playing as I somehow manage to distinguish Hyuuga Neji from school. I can barely tell it's her. She's wearing a magnificent kimono, instead of her usual casual look. I abruptly become very self-conscious of my dark blue sweater and black sweatpants.

"_N-neji?_" I stammer.

There's a teenager that looks to be about Ita-nii's age sitting on the side. He has dark brown hair and a fierce look. I pray that isn't the translator.

Neji is stuttering something out and to my dismay, the intimidating man says in a surprisingly high-pitched voice for a guy, "_She invites you to sit down_."

"_Uh… okay_." I drop down to kneel opposite of her as she pours some tea messily. It spills all over the place, but I drink the small amount that has ended up in the cup anyway. She gives me a sheepish grin and I try to return it, but find myself choking over the strong tea. How long was this seeping? A decade or so maybe?

Neji's saying something I can't understand and again the teenager speaks.

"_She apologizes for spilling so much tea and letting it seep a bit more than necessary_."

A _bit _more?

"_That's fine_," I tell him and he leans over to Neji to tell her. She's busy cleaning up the big spill now with a towel that seems to have appeared from nowhere. I can already feel the massive headache I'm going to obtain from this meeting.

---

I am the stupidest, ditziest, most idiotic girl ever! I messed this whole thing up! Right when Sasuke came in, I was too dumbfounded to do anything but gawk at him. Then I was too upset to pour the tea correctly and it ended up everywhere. The part that _did _make it into his cup was much too strong and ended up choking him. The meeting ended with several coughing fits, numerous tea stains, and plenty of uncomfortable conversations. Overall, I made myself like a fool.

Gaara's brother left with Sasuke, leaving me alone in the room. I'm bawling like a small child that dropped his or her ice cream. Why am I such a pathetic failure? I just screwed everything up! Sasuke is going to hate me and my father is going to give me away after all!

I mop up all of my tears on my kimono. It's soaked with tea, making it wet and uncomfortable. I need to take a bath. I hiccup slightly as I make my way to my room to run some soothing hot water to rest in, but stop halfway. I swear I can hear footsteps, but when I turn around, there's no one in sight. How odd.

---

It has started snowing now. I wrap my arms around myself and shiver. I wasn't expecting it to be this cold, or else I would have brought something heavier than this sweater. Where's Ita-nii? He promised he'd come. I hear a song of despair being played in my head.

"Ita-nii, where are you? I want to go home."

I sneeze as a strong wind blows by. I'm temporarily blinded by my hair, but once I push it out of my face, Ita-nii is next to me.

"I'm so sorry Sasuke. I ran into some trouble while I was picking you up. I took a wrong left turn on one street. Ah. Well, it's a good thing I came early or else I'd be really late!"

That's not right. Ita-nii never makes mistakes. I'm getting awfully suspicious.

"Sasuke! Quit spacing off!" he calls, several feet ahead of me.

I look up and jog a bit to catch up, grasping his hand just to test him. He shudders a bit and his grip tightens and forcefully relaxes. Something's definitely up.

The snow is swirling peacefully downwards and my mental musician plays a calm song, soothed by the gentle fall of the fluffy white particles. I glance back at the imprints my shoes have made and sneeze once more. I might be catching a cold.

"Ita-nii, why is snow so cold?" I inquire randomly. "Did you ever wonder why winter is always so very cold?"

He sighs a bit and attempts to loosen my clasp on his hand, but I prevent him from doing so. Instead, he answers the question.

"I think winter is cold is to make us appreciate the warmth of spring in contrast," he reasons. "If it were always warm, we wouldn't know the pain of its absence, and we wouldn't appreciate it at all. We would take it for granted. That is why I think winter needs to be cold and unpleasant."

I beam at him and he adverts his gaze to the side. I frown now and my serene music is replaced with a troubled tune.

"Ita-nii…" I begin and he reluctantly looks at me. "Never mind." He turns back to the snow.

Why are you so uncomfortable? Why won't you willingly hold my hand? Why have you become so distant? When did you get this cold? I understand why winter is so cold, but why you too?

We're close to the Uchiha district and Ita-nii begins another failed attempt of shaking off my hand. He starts to fiddle with his ponytail, a nervous habit.

I want to ask what's wrong as the music in my head speeds up, but Ita-nii looks too distracted. What's got him so riled up? Maybe it's best if I wait until I get a chance to ask my mother if anything happened since he came home. Perhaps he got into another fight with our father; he's always suppressing Ita-nii.

It's quiet, I notice as we enter the seemingly deserted area of the Uchiha estate. Something's wrong. It's usually fairly noisy, with everyone bustling about, buying last minute ingredients for dinner and inviting each other over. The music in my head gets louder with every passing moment.

Finally, I hear something in the distance. It's the sobbing of a woman. I release my hold on Ita-nii's hand to check out what's going on.

The music in my head is shut off for the first time for as long as I can remember.

"Mom," I breathe in horror.

She's leaning over my father, weeping in agony over a bloody sword sticking up from his chest. The area is surrounded with numerous dead bodies. I can make out a few of them: my grandmother and grandfather, my aunt, a couple of my cousins.

"Why? Why did you take it this far?" she cries.

"I had to. I never loved this family; they never loved me. I was just their tool. Well, that's enough of that. Look what their little 'tool' did," a voice I know only two well responds from behind me.

"Ita-nii!" I shout, regaining my ability to speak. "You did all of this? Why? Why did you kill everyone?"

I can feel a liquid leaking out of my eyes now.

"Stay out of this," he orders, pushing me to the side with a punch on my face.

I shriek in pain so I don't hear what my mother and Ita-nii are discussing. This can't be Ita-nii. Ita-nii would never do anything like this.

I barely see the imposter knocking my mother unconscious through my tears.

"Who are you?" I yell.

"Foolish little brother. Is it too much for you pitiful mind to take that your dear older brother just killed almost the entire Uchiha clan?" He laughs cruelly.

"You're not my brother. You're not my brother! Ita-nii would never, never, ever do anything like this! My brother is not like this at all! Ita-nii is kind and friendly and… and…"

"Oh please. That perfect older brother thing was all an act. This family only used me for my smarts and restrained me from reaching my dreams. They knew I was smarter and better than them. They didn't want me to overpower them. A lot of good that did." He laughs again.

"DON'T SCREW WITH ME!" I scream at the top of my lungs, charging towards him only to be flung backwards as he deflects my punch.

"You are naive and stupid, Sasuke. This whole time, no one ever even _liked _you, yet you sob for them like they are a proper family. You deserve death. You deserve worse than death. If you cared about them so much, you would have been able to please them. Therefore, I'm keeping you alive, to make sure the guilt and pain of not being loved seeps in."

I can taste the blood in my mouth, I can smell the blood in the air, I can hear that terrible laughter, I can see all the corpses, I can feel myself loosing consciousness, but I can't hear any song being played on that grand piano inside my head before everything turns as black as a B flat key. (4)

---

One- When it's Sasuke's p.o.v., italics are English and regular is Japanese because he's Japanese.

Two- Hinata's imagination's getting a bit on the wild side.

Three- Well, there are, but not the way Sasuke thinks.

Four- For those who hadn't realized, B flat is a black key.

Psychoticbunny: I don't think I did very well on that last scene. T-T Oh well, I tried. Reviewers get whichever character they want! But I get dibs on Gaara! Also on Sasuke! And Itachi! And Kankuro! And Neji! And-

Gaara: You can only have one character!

Psychoticbunny: Then I get dibs on Ritsuka!

Gaara: He's not a character from Naruto!

Psychoticbunny: But he's sooooo kawaii!

Gaara: Whatever. I'd rather have him get tortured than me.

Ritsuka: Wait a minute. That was mean. And what am I doing here anyway?

Psychoticbunny: 'evil fangirl stare'

Ritsuka: Should I be scared?

Gaara: Yes. Yes you should.


	7. Chapter 7

Psychoticbunny: You probably all hate me now, but I just don't get as much time to type now! I'll try as hard as I can to get the chapters out there though. Review replies! Oh wait. There are none. Never mind then. Still, I'd just like to tell you all that because someone mentioned it was hard to tell what p.o.v. it is, I'll put the name underneath. You'll see.

Disclaimer: I own the plot and I'm proud, god damn it, proud! Of course, I wouldn't _mind _owning Naruto…

Warnings: A distressed Hinata, a perverted Gaara, and a sad Sasuke. Go ahead. You know you want to read and find out just how perverted I'm willing to make Gaara look.

---

(Hinata)

I pick up my pace and a walk turns to a jog, which in turn transforms into running at top speed. Perhaps I'm being paranoid. Why on Earth would someone be stalking _me _of all people? It isn't like I'm the daughter of an extremely rich family or something.

…

"Ahhh!" I yell as I push myself to run faster. This only causes me to trip over my kimono and slam my face onto the floor right in front of a door to a room I don't recognize after narrowly avoiding smashing into a corner.

I can see a shadow in the hallway. The person doesn't look to be much older than me. Still, height wouldn't stop my mysterious follower from kidnapping or… or _killing _me. I jump onto my feet and jiggle the doorknob with all of my power once I realize that I've trapped myself in a dead end. It's no use; the door is locked.

"Help me!" I scream. "Someone help! Help! I don't want to die!"

I start crying again. Was my performance at Sasuke and my meeting so terrible, they had instantly hired thugs to kill me? Maybe Ge ge is right about all of that "fate and destiny" stuff he always talks about endlessly. Is it my destiny to never succeed, and now fate has for me so I can repent for all of my errors? I knew I should have prayed to my ancestors longer, but I wanted to get to school really early.

The figure draws closer and closer; it's almost about to round the corner.

"No! Don't come near me!"

"Hinata?"

Oh no! Oh god! This is where it all ends! I'm about to die! I hope that Ge ge- wait. Hinata?

"Gaara!" I cry out in relief. "I thought you were some creepy, insane mass murderer sent to kill me and you would chop off each of my limbs one at a time with some kind of giant ax or something! No offense or anything," I add at the end hastily.

"Thanks. That did _wonders_ for my motivation and self-confidence. I can now proudly say that I've been mistaken for an ax murderer," he says, as sarcastic as ever.

"At least ax murderers know how to be assertive," I point out helpfully. He doesn't seem to appreciate the comment. "Well, anyway. What are you doing here?"

"Well, I'm standing, I'm breathing, I'm-"

"No, not that! How did you get in? _Why_ are you here?"

"I came with Kankuro and I'm here because I want to be."

Typical Gaara.

"Fine, I guess, but I have to take a bath," I tell him, holding up some of the soggy fabric of my kimono for proof.

"'Kay. I'll wait outside."

"Why don't you just go home?"

"'Cause I don't want to."

His face is completely blank. Man, he's persistent. I feel a bit uncomfortable bathing with a friend over, especially a male, but it doesn't seem like Gaara can be convinced to leave.

"Um… well… okay. Just don't peek!"

I hurry past him and find that he, unfortunately, has tagged along. I busy myself with a search for some clothes to wear, but I can feel gaze on my back and it's making me unnerved. I hide my panties inside my other clothing; it's the only pink thing I own. The worse part is that it has little hearts all over it. I'm just happy, for once, that my parents won't allow me to wear a bra.

"Hinata," Gaara says. The noise added to all of my tension is enough.

I shriek and drop all of my clothes in surprise. Guess what lands on top!

I look up in horror to see Gaara blushing madly and covering his eyes with his hands. Jumping out that window looks pretty inviting right now. Or maybe I should climb into my bed and huddle underneath the covers for the rest of my life. Maybe I'd suffocate.

"W-why don't you j-just take your bath?" Gaara stutters.

"Um, okay."

I gathered up my clothes as quickly as I can without tripping over my kimono or my feet, which I do anyway on my rush to the bathroom connected to my room. I clumsily push myself up and stumble the rest of the way. I lock the door and turn the doorknob a couple of times to make sure there's no chance of it opening.

I twist the faucet in the bathtub until it's a warm temperature and then hold my hand under the running water to check that it isn't to hot or cold. It's so perfect I leave my hand there for a couple of seconds.

With a last glance at the door, I remove the stupid kimono (I'm never wearing one of those again.) and slip into the water. I relax as soon as my body is submerged, only then noticing how tense I had been. Really, there's nothing to worry about. Gaara isn't the type to peek, is he? I shrink further into the bath and reach for the shampoo. The sooner this is over, the better.

---

(Gaara)

I can't believe I saw her underwear. It was so… so… _pink_. It was almost creepy how pink and girly it was. I thought her parents made her cross dress! Still, it's not as bad as some of the stuff my sister wears… ew. No, don't go there.

I think back to what Hinata said about peeking. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not the type to peek at all. I _am _the type to defy anything and everything anyone tells me. And she happened to mention not to peek. So is it really my fault? It's not that I _choose_ to be evil; I was born that way.

I snicker at my own joke. It doesn't matter if I see anything anyway. I used to have to share baths with Kankuro and Temari to save on the water bill. We stopped once they entered puberty and were less comfortable showing their bodies. Temari's jobs are able to allow us to take separate baths. We take more showers though, to save water. Sometimes I wish we were Amish. Amish people don't have electricity bills, now do they?

Well, Amish or not, I'm peeking.

I walk up to the door and search for any holes. I scan the walls for openings also. There are none besides the crack in the door and I can't get a good view from there. Damn it. I'll just have to find another way. I'm going to see part of her body, even if I have to rip her clothes off her the second she steps outside the door!

…

Well, no. I wouldn't _actually _do that.

I absent-mindedly skim over the room as I rack my brain for a way to get a better sight. My eyes catch on a certain item lying on the floor. How I didn't notice it previously is beyond me, but I sure as hell do notice it now.

I smirk and pick it up. Score.

---

(Hinata)

I finish speed bathing in a couple of minutes. After today, I'd love more than anything to soak in the tub for hours on end. However, I wouldn't want to keep Gaara waiting.

I grab my towel and begin drying off my hair. It sticks out in every direction now. I run my hands through it, straitening it out and making myself look more presentable. I have a strange urge to look my very best in front of Gaara.

I finish grooming my hair and dry off the rest of my body. Then I hang the towel back up neatly next to the one I dry my hands with.

I pause before dressing to examine myself in the mirror. I'm not the best looking girl around. In fact, I'm pretty plain when I think about it. My personality isn't anything special either. I think about Pink Girl and Blond Girl from my class. They're both so beautiful, while I'm so boring. I wonder if I would look prettier if I had silky, long, flowing hair like they did.

I close my eyes and try to imagine it, but all I can see is the two other girls looking glamorous and myself standing off in the background, plain as ever. I sigh and open my eyes. I suppose I just wasn't supposed to be attractive.

I look away from the mirror; I wouldn't want to walk out all depressed. Instead, I focus on my clothing. I squat down and search through the pile for my underwear.

Hm. That's odd. I can usually spot that thing a mile away, the obnoxious color it is, but I'm having a hard time finding it. I shake my shirt and my pants to see if it's hidden inside one of them.

Wait. I must have dropped it when I tripped. Which would mean it's outside. With Gaara.

I try not to panic now. It was embarrassing enough the first time he viewed the article of clothing. Oh, why couldn't there have been a package of white left in the store! Why had Ge ge (1) resorted to buying that specific one! There was a purple version too, but I just _had _to go for the more "interesting" of the two! And the worst part is; now I don't have underwear!

…

I could always ask Gaara…

No. You do not ask your male friends to rummage around through your underwear drawer, no matter how drastic the situation is. There's a line, and that option crosses it, runs an extra mile to a bus stop, takes a bus to an airport, rides halfway across the world, and finally takes off into outer space, landing on Jupiter and- yeah. I think my point has been made.

I'll just put on my pants on without panties and slip the pair I dropped after I get out of the bathroom. Then again, do I really want to walk around missing underwear for the remainder of the time Gaara decides to stay over? I want to tell him to leave and that it's my house so he should obey my rules, but Gaara doesn't obey anyone's rules except his own.

Well, I suppose there's no other option. I'll just go the whole… however long Gaara decides he's going to stay with me, without underwear.

---

(Gaara)

Hinata _finally_ walks out of the freaking bathroom, a sheepish grin spread across her face and a pink tint on her cheeks. Well, I say walk, but it's actually more of a waddle, like she put pebbles in her pants or something.

"So Gaara…" she begins uncomfortably. "When do you think you're going to be leaving? No rush or anything, but…" If words could be mush, these would be the… well… the mushiest of them all, I guess. I'll assume she's muttering something about me being handsome and heroic to regain some lost confidence and take my mind off the ax murderer comment.

"I'm leaving when I want to."

I'm aware that I'm acting like a stuck-up prick, but the truth is I can't leave when I want to. It's not safe for me to go home and I have nowhere else to go. In reality, I'm stuck here, whether I like it or not. It would probably be a great deal easier to simply inform Hinata that before I left, my father aimed a knife at me, but I don't want to get her worried. It's better for her to think that I'm being my usual, rude self. He'll cool down eventually anyway, but for the time being, I'm too afraid to go back and Temari ordered me to stay here until she deemed our apartment safe.

Suddenly, I loose interest in the prank I'm planning with Hinata's panties. The fact that I'm unable to even see my sister is pretty depressing.

"Hey Hinata." She lifts her head up from the low place it had sunk during her inaudible rant. "Here." I toss the piece of pink fabric to her. She fails to make the catch and dives onto the ground to retrieve it. She's blushing extremely hard, but I don't get any of the pleasure I normally get out of seeing her flustered.

"Um… Gaara? Do you mind if I go back into the bathroom to change?"

"Hn."

I don't attempt to peek, despite the fact that she's forgotten to lock the door this time.

---

(Sasuke)

I awake with a start. I have a brief moment where I have no idea what happened, but then the memories come back, along with pain in my stomach and face, proving that last night was real. (2)

"Mom!" I shout, sitting up. Did Ita-nii kill her too? Please no. Please, oh please, oh please.

"_Good morning Mr. Uchiha!_" a friendly-looking nurse greets cheerfully. "_You're up sooner than expected._"

I glare at the woman, however I have to stop when I feel my body growing weak in a sudden surge of dizziness. I fall backwards onto the pillow, breathing heavily. I hear the nurse moving around me and adjusting some things, judging by the rustling sound.

"_Please just stay still for a second, Mr. Uchiha. This will only hurt for a second_," she reassures me.

I feel a needle inject something into my arm. I scream in pain. Couldn't she have warned me I was about to get stabbed? But no, that's much too sensible, now isn't it?

"_I'm happy to notify you that your mother has survived. However…_"

I'm snapped out of my thoughts as I'm reminded of my objective.

"_Where is she? Can I see her? What about the rest of them? What about my dad, my cousins, my aunts, my uncles, my… my brother…_"

I let go of the nurse's shoulders. I hadn't realized that I sprung up and clutched onto them in my sudden spurge of passion.

"_You're m-mother is in another room and you'll be able to see her shortly. First you need to rest, sweetie. As for the rest of your family, I'm sorry to say that we weren't able to do anything about them. I'm very sorry. We tried our best_." She gives me a sympathetic look. I don't need sympathy or pity. Sympathy and pity doesn't bring them back!

I feel ashamed, but I end up crying anyway, completely disregarding my location and that the nurse is looking slightly uncomfortable next to me. I'm so stupid. I should've known Nii-san was up to something. I shouldn't have let him leave so easily. I should've stopped him. It's all my fault! He was acting shifty from the beginning.

The nurse wraps her arms around me and kisses me lightly on the forehead. She whispers kind and consoling things to me, but I wish she would disappear. I want to be alone. Or at least see my mom. I feel so pathetic, wanting nothing more than to be with my mommy. It sounds like something that would come out of a small child in distress's mind.

"_My mom_," I choke out. I wipe all of my tears off of my face with my arm and sniffle a bit before continuing. "_I want to see my mom. Can I see her? Please?_"

"_Well…_" The woman looks hesitant, but nods her head nonetheless. "_I just want to tell you that we did all we could, but it was a very… very _hard_ experience for her. Oh, and as for your brother, the police are tracking him as we speak_."

"_What do you mean, you did all you could?_" I ask. I won't allow her to change the subject.

"_Well, it's not very easy to take in your son killing your entire family and she had taken a particularly hard blow on the head and… well… she isn't quite, well, you'll see when we get there,_" she says, choosing her words carefully.

I reject her extended hand and get up on my own, although I do loose my balance and have to lean on the nurse for support. Once she makes sure I'm all right, we exit my room and head across the hospital to my mother's.

Doctors buzz about and every so often a few run by with an unfortunate person on a stretcher. The nurse waves to certain ones and even stops to chat with another woman her age for a minute or two. I rock back and forth on my feet through the entire conversation.

Though the journey seemed to take hours, we at last come to a stop outside a door with a creepy man with skin too white to be natural. His eyes have a snake-like appearance to them. I can't help but feel uneasy around the man and have an overwhelming urge to run the nearest bathroom and vomit when he leans close to me and introduces himself.

I have cold sweat running down the back of my neck by the time he leaves. The unnerved feeling I got fades away along with his presence. I breathe heavily, sucking in air like it's the last time I'll encounter oxygen. I couldn't even listen to what he was saying, his pure existence so terrifying.

"Mr. Uchiha? Are you alright?" the nurse questions with concern.

"Y-yeah. I'm f-fine."

"Do you want to see her now?"

I discontinue panting and wipe the sweat on my neck away.

"Yeah."

"Are you sure you're ready?"

I pause before answering.

"I hope so."

---

(Hinata)

This is so frustrating! No matter how hard I try, Gaara will not leave me alone! He decided to stay over last night, and now he's coming to my house again! Doesn't he know when to stop? I don't have the time or patience to be baby-sitting him, but it's not like I can lock him up in my room and force him to stay there all by himself. He's been wearing this really out of place serious expression ever since he gave my underwear back. In fact, when I tried to yell at him, he didn't comeback with any snide remark or anything. He just stood there, looking guilty. (3)

He's sitting on my bed currently, gazing out the window I had escaped from on Monday. I've tried asking him what's wrong, but all he replies with is a, "Nothing," before going back to ignoring me.

I'm really irritated. I'm not the type to get irritated at all. I tend to be quite patient and caring, if I do say so myself, but this is just outrageous. I've reached the point where I'm seconds from ripping out every strand of my hair and screaming at the top of my lungs, preferably in Gaara's ear.

"Why won't you tell me?" I demand.

He turns his head slowly to face me. "Tell you what?"

"You know what I want to be told! I want to know what's wrong! Don't lie to me! I'm not the gullible idiot you think I am!" I shout.

He turns his head back towards the window.

I can't take it anymore. I scream so loudly I start to get a headache so I have to stop. I curl up next to Gaara's feet, biting my lip and puffing my cheeks out, my eyebrows narrowed. I know I probably resemble a disgruntled chipmunk, but I'm just so angry. I can't remember any other time in my life where I was ever this mad. Why won't he tell me what's wrong?!

---

(Gaara)

Hinata probably hates me by now. I don't know what's worse: seeing her aggravated or worried.

I'm being stupid. Hinata is getting more upset being kept in the dark. I slide off the bed and gently pet my friend's head.

"Hinata…"

"I'm not talking to you," she says.

"You just did," I point out.

"That time didn't count. Neither does this one."

"_Roses are red, violets are blue. Sugar is sweet and so are you._"

There's a silence where I'm sure that curiosity is eating away at Hinata's very soul.

"What does it mean?"

"The truth."

She sighs. "Whatever. If you're not gonna tell me, then I guess there's no use in pestering you."

"_Sugar is sweet and so are you…_" I repeat.

---

One- Hinata always shops with Neji. Even for underwear. Poor Neji. He just wants to stare at Gaara's ass all day. Sucks for him.

Two- Hurray for time skips!

Three- Yay! Another time skip!

Psychoticbunny: I got out my old book of nursery rhymes. Oh the memories. Ahem. Anyway, Gaara got a bit ooc in that last scene. I hope I'll be able to fix that up next chappy…


	8. Chapter 8

Psychoticbunny: OMFG, I'm alive. Sorry about not updating. I honestly don't have a reason. I just didn't feel like writing. So, take it away Shika-shika-chan!

Shikamaru: Damn fangirl. Disclaimers are so troublesome… she doesn't own us though… I wanna take a nap…

Psychoticbunny: And there is cursing/sexual reference/bad adjectives/whatever else there is! Now read my sucky story even though you probably hate me at this point!

---

(Sasuke)

The door creaks open almost excruciatingly slow. I've started twiddling my thumbs out of anxiety. My foot taps out an uneven beat on the white tile below me.

"_Mrs. Uchiha, you have a visitor_," the nurse says in a soft voice that one might use when talking to a small child. "_You can go in now_," she informs me.

I nod even though she's still staring into my mother's room. With a gulp to slow my heartbeats down, I enter.

"Mom," I croak and rush forward to embrace her.

---

(Gaara)

I tap out the rhythm of the song my teacher's cell phone ring is set as. She looks worried as she speaks quietly to the person at the other end of the line. Hinata's also looking concerned and keeps on whispering questions about whether or not I'm okay. I'd told her about the incident at my house last night because I decided that it was extremely unreasonable of me to not trust her by now. That was a mistake.

"Gaara, do you want to tell someone? I know that you probably wouldn't be too comfortable, but don't you think that-" She quiets down when I glare at her as harshly as I can. "Sorry."

I let my face soften up and gaze back towards Ms. Kurenai. It's not like she's _trying _to annoy me.

"_Please, I'm in school. No. I will, I will. Yes, of course. I just- you what? No! Listen, I need to teach. Please can we just continue this conversation later? Please? Okay. Thank you so much. Yeah. Okay, I promise. Bye_." She closes the phone and focuses back on the class, which has managed to turn into a sort of three-ring circus during her chat.

Naruto and Kiba are pulling on Sakura and Ino's hair when they're not looking while Chouji's pulled out his pack of chips and is jamming them into his mouth at an inhuman pace. Shikamaru looks a bit disgusted, but it's apparently too much of a bother to tell him to stop so he instead lays his head down for the third nap this day. Lee's explaining something about youth to Hinata even though it's pretty obvious she isn't paying any attention at all to his lecture. Shino found a poisonous-looking insect on the window and is currently trying to urge it into the classroom so he can capture it or eat it or… or… do whatever he does with all of those bugs he collects. Sai's teasing Naruto about being a dick-less wonder and Suigetsu and Karin are ready to kill each other while Juugo observes from the sidelines.

"_Class_!"

Everyone stops in the middle of what they're doing to stare blankly at the fuming woman.

"_Get back to your seats! And Suigetsu! To the principal's office_!" she orders.

"_What? Why? Karin started it_!" he complains.

"_Too bad! She can go too! And as for the rest of you, I'm handing out some class work! Work on it until lunch_!"

And with a last threatening glace at Naruto and Kiba, who are snickering to themselves in an unnerving way, she turns and chooses Lee and me to hand out some papers. She won't make eye contact with me as she hands me the stack of math sheets. For some reason, she's never liked me too much. It's strange really; we never even met each other until this year.

I pass out the class work calmly, ignoring Lee's challenge to have a race of who could finish handing out the work first. I keep my eyes on him for a bit as he bellows out a passionate statement about youth and runs around before my attention drifts to Sasuke's empty seat. For as long as I can remember, he's never missed a day of class to this day. I frown while I pass the chair, slamming down Shikamaru's paper with extra force in hopes to wake him up.

"_I wasn't asleep! I was thinking! Oh, you're not the teacher. Huh? What's this? Humph. Work is so troublesome…_"

---

(Sasuke)

"She pushed me away…" I whisper at the ceiling.

I'd been so happy to see her, but she pushed me away. I thought she would have returned my feelings, but she didn't recognize me, her son. She had glared at me and called me a stranger. Even though everyone else was murdered, even though Ita-nii betrayed my trust, it's unbelievable that my mother would've just forgotten about me. In fact, I don't _want_ to believe it. I want this whole thing to be some big nightmare that will simply disappear once I wake up.

She had been my only hope, my last connection to my family. And she wouldn't even accept a hug.

I swallow the lump forming in my throat. I'm not going to cry. Crying makes me weak and I am not weak. I bite my lip to muffle a strangled coughing sound and blink my eyes repetitively to prevent myself from sobbing.

Naruto would always make me feel better. I wish he were here, to crack a stupid joke or act like the idiot he is, spreading his happiness to everyone around him. Does he even miss me?

---

(Hinata)

Gaara is annoyed. Very annoyed. Personally, I'm just happy I'm not the cause of it, because it looks like any moment my best friend will run over to Ramen Boy and rip his head off. Apparently, the blond is being exceptionally aggravating today due to the absence of Pretty Boy.

"Hey, Hinata. Do you think that this knife might be able to kill him if I aim well?" Gaara inquires, eyeing his plastic ware with mild interest.

"Gaara!" I exclaim.

"What's your problem?!" he snaps. "I'll plot whoever's death I want! Now leave me be or you'll be next!"

I open my mouth to say something back, but the sound comes out a pathetic squeak. Gaara's been really defensive lately. Whenever I simply check whether or not he's okay, he gets really angry with me. In fact, had I been gifted with some lovely form of a backbone, I would have reminded him whose house he had been staying at for the past two days! However, I was not gifted with such a wonderful feature and even if I _did _rub it in his face, he probably would have attempted to return to his own house, and that is something I can't allow to happen.

I gaze at Gaara, wondering if he'd ever trust me with any information again, when he abruptly turns and locks eyes with me. I swing my head to the side in embarrassment and I can see him do the same out of the corner of my eye.

Gaara mutters something I can't understand.

"Hm? Could you repeat that?" I ask.

"Finish your lunch, moron. Lunch is gonna be over soon." He says the next part so quickly I barely catch. "I don't want you to be hungry."

I can't stop the huge grin that's spreading across my face. Maybe he's just a bit stressed and tends to deal it out onto other people. This whole relationship almost reminds me of a roller coaster sometimes. Well, I'm not actually sure if it reminds me of the ride itself, for I've always been much too terrified of heights to ever step foot on one of those metal monsters, but it does remind me of the nauseating twists and turns and the huge drops that make you scream at the top of your lungs, and then finally when you return to the soft and peaceful end. In fact, I-

"BOO!"

I shriek in surprise, angered by the chuckling I hear. Who dares to interrupt my internal monologue? (1) Oh, of course. Ramen Boy does. My eyes dart quickly to the plastic knife Gaara has given up on, only to rest on the energetic nine-year-old.

Gaara's yelling at him by the time I've processed exactly what happened. I can't understand a single word they're saying/screaming, but I do now I've been introduced to several new shades of red by Gaara's face. I suppose it's because he's found a new subject to lash out on.

An aid runs over and separates them by overpowering the noise with her reprimanding shouts.

"Um… Gaara?" I ask tentatively, afraid that saying the wrong this would permanently damage our relationship. Still, I am going to confront him about telling someone about his experience at home. I will succeed. I won't chicken out no matter what and-

He turns his head to face me, penetrating my skull with his fierce stare.

-and what was I saying?

I drop my head to my lap, my hair hopefully concealing the red splotches that I'm positive had made an appearance on my cheeks.

"I was… um… w-well… you know… uh…"

At times like these, I really wish that my confidence hadn't taken a vacation to some foreign island… and then never returned.

"Hinata, don't worry about me, okay? Just focus on yourself. I mean, my life's probably beyond fixing by now. You still have hope. People like you. You're really nice. I'm just a cranky eyesore. You saw Kankuro… you heard what he said…"

My stomach flutters when Gaara compliments me, but I'm angered by his other comment.

"Gaara, you said it yourself, you're no monster. You told him to shut the, well, shut up when he called you that."

"I lied. I really am a monster. I killed my mom, I cause Temari and Kankuro pain that they don't deserve, and I don't even do anything about it. I don't need or want your pity."

"Gaara! You-"

I'm cut off by the same aid that had stopped the fight between Ramen Boy and Gaara.

"_We're heading back to the classroom now for indoor recess. Make a straight line in front of the door please. And don't push!"_

With a blink of my eyes, Gaara has already disappeared into the crowd of children combating for position of front of the line and, for a select few, the back. I let out a hefty sigh and join their numbers.

---

(Sasuke)

I'm finally allowed to go back to school. I haven't missed a single day in my life and now this! And I was competing with Naruto for perfect attendance…

A couple of missed days doesn't actually matter too much. The dobe (2) is late so many times I'm sure it adds up to more than my two measly days.

Even so, those two measly days could have contained tons of lessons I haven't been taught and plenty of homework to make up. Naruto's always nagged me about why I do make up homework even though it's not necessary in the fourth grade. To be honest, I've never known myself. Completing work simply makes me feel complete inside.

"_Sasuke! Oh my god! Where were you? I missed you so much!_" Ino calls.

I'm displeased to see that she's arrived early. Gaara's leaning on a nearby wall, glaring at the girl as she rushes forward to grant me with an unwanted bone-crushing embrace.

"_So why were you absent?_" she pesters.

"_I was sick,_" I reply.

"_Sick? With what? Are you okay? Oh, my poor Sasuke! All alone and sick and cold and… and… and… uh…_" She trails off, searching for another depressing adjective.

"_It was just a slight cough. My mom…_" I falter at the mention of my mother. "_Um…my mom wanted me to stay home anyway._" I mentally add an, 'I wish' at the end of the sentence.

"_A slight cough! That sounds bad! Do you want me to kiss it better?_" the intelligent-on-Opposite-Day blond inquires. How would she kiss a slight cough?

…

You know what, I don't think I want to know the answer of that…

I look into Ino's big blue eyes with disgust. I hate all of my stupid fan girls. They're all just a bunch of sluts and disgraceful excuses for human beings. Seriously, they should concentrate more on finding their lost brains if they have all this time to annoy me. (3)

Ino wraps her arms around one of mine firmly. I see a future professional leech.

"Gaara!" calls out a high-pitched voice from behind.

It's the new kid, Neji. At first, I liked her, as she was not another fan girl and a great source of amusement, but calling me Sakura, accident or not, was unacceptable.

She stops in front of the clingy ditz and me and wages a mini mental war.

"_Hello, um…Sasuke?_" she greets me uncertainly, pronouncing each syllable slowly and carefully. "_How are you?_"

"_So you finally learned my name, eh?_" I seethe.

It seems as if I've spoken too quickly because gives me a terrified look and then glances off in Gaara's direction, waiting for him to come and rescue her. And here he comes, complete with a nasty glare.

"_What'd you do to her?_"

"_Jeez, calm down. I didn't do anything. She didn't understand my sentence._"

No one is stupid enough to mess with something Gaara cares about. In fact, most people aren't even able to pull together enough courage to talk to him. I kind of feel like acting really horrible to everyone around me, but I know this isn't the situation where it would be acceptable.

"_G-good m-m-morning Gaara,_" Ino stutters. Her grip around my arm tightens.

Ino's one of the kids who would rather attempt to befriend a rattlesnake than stay in the same room with Gaara alone for over five minutes. She would probably leave, had it not include leaving me, her "darling Sasuke," behind with our not-so-harmless classmate.

She lets out a squeak and tries to hide herself behind me when he looks at her.

Neji whispers something to Gaara, but I can't catch what it is. He shrugs in response.

"_G-good morning!_" she says to Ino.

For once, Ino's speechless, paralyzed by the jade eyes that are watching her every move. Maybe I should hang out with Gaara more often…

"_See you later and if you ever lay a finger on Neji, I will murder you in the slowest and most painful way I can imagine,_" Gaara threatens, dragging Neji by the arm while she gives him a confused look.

Actually, I think that not coming in contact with him ever again, excluding school matters, is a better choice.

"_SASUKE!!!!_"

---

(Temari)

I pause before opening the tall oak door, thinking over what I'm about to do once more. This decision could affect my life. This decision could affect many lives.

I glare at the shiny golden plaque on the door and slowly raise my hand to knock. I close my eyes and move my hand at an agonizing pace to the door. My knees are trembling and I can taste blood on my lip where I've been gnawing in my distress. All of the consequences I might have to face are shooting through my mind so quickly, I feel the beginning of a very long headache coming on.

Still, I think back to everything that has happened in the past nine years to reassure myself and regain some of my courage.

There's a bead of sweat running down my face by the time I rest my hand on the door.

I couldn't do it. I didn't have enough motivation. I put my hand back at my side. What an idiot I must have looked like! Maybe… maybe I would be able to do it another time. Maybe…

---

One- I know it's a bit ooc, but I couldn't help myself

Two- Dead last

Three- No, Ino will not be an annoying ditzy character. She just acts that way around Sasuke. She will probably play a major role in the future.

Psychoticbunny: Well, there you have it. Not the best chapter, but it's better than nothing. I hope I'll update more now. I can finally get the plot moving. I know exactly what I'm going to do (even though I'll probably end up doing something different)! Mlergleflergle!

…

Peace out

…

Yeah, yeah, I'll leave now…


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